#2 Crossing Traffic Defeats Widening
#3 Add Lanes/Add Injury
Simple Truth #2 & #3:
Simple Truth #2: Crossing Traffic Defeats Widening.
As Willie Loman's wife says in "Death of a Salesman" -- "Attention must be paid!"
Attention must be paid to crossing traffic when STOPlighted intersections must repeatedly stop the flow to allow traffic to enter or cross.. No matter how wide the roadway, no matter how much effort to time the STOPlights (ATMS), the STOPlighted design forces drivers to brake/stop/idle/accelerate, increasing travel time and risk of accident through the corridor. The wider the intersection, the longer the Red light stays RED.That being reality, no matter how many lanes wide, drivers will continue to feel the roadway is "congested." STOPlights on RED collect vehicles into packs (traffic engineer term - platoons). This pack stays together without fully dispersing, until it is stopped by the next RED light, and remains packed on to the next STOPlight to again brake/stop/idle/accelerate. -- up to the speed of the roadway's wide design posted 45mph on the Venice ByPass..This is illustrated in the cartoon Goofy Drives Venice ByPass http://tinyurl.com/7ylenk2The outcome: Drivers stopped in a pack feel congested -- though the roadway beyond the RED light is empty, unused, wasted -- extremely inefficient -- the FDOT intersection design planned at US 41 Venice ave (9 lanes = 6 lanes+2lefts+1 right). See how this happens in this photo of US 41 @ Stickney Point.with same design (note:posted 45mph).. .
Simple Truth #3: Add Lanes, Add Accidents.
The more lanes the more opportunity for driver error. Added lanes at a STOPlight can lead to a serious increase in accidents, especially intersections heavy with left turns. Add the risk of REDlight running's head-on and broadside crashes.The risk of intersection accidents by STOPlights versus modern roundabouts has been studied by the (click) Insurance Institute of Highway Safety. Fewer points of conflict in a roundabout means fewer injuries. The riskiest move of all is a left turn, which is a dominant move in the FDOT US41 Venice Ave. design.This is especially true where senior drivers are a large share of roadway users (on wheels and on foot), such as Venice where more than half are over the age of 65. (click graph)
Safer mobility for the
best taxpayer cost/benefit
is the primary objective of
elected officials ... why,
over and over throughout
the USA, they are now choosing
modern roundabouts to
replace traffic signals at
arterial intersections. The
Federal Highway Admin shows
in this video why it advocates
modern roundabouts. (click) http://tinyurl.com/8ygvs4w
Fact: eight of the top ten most dangerous intersections in Sarasota County are on six lane corridors - Fruitville @ Beneva, Honore
US 41 @ Bee Ridge, Stickney Point
BeeRidge @ Beneva, McIntosh, Tuttle,
US301 @ University Parkway.
(source: MPO 2035 Long Range Transportation Plan, see www.mympo.org
FDOT report: compared to a four-lane divided urban arterial, a six-lane divided urban arterial had:
29% more motorist fatalities per vehicle mile traveled
62% more motorist crashes per vehicle mile traveled
What proved mobility factors does the FDOT have for widening that override proved multimodal alternatives without widening that deliver congestion relief, better travel time, greater safety, increased sales, and does so at less cost?
With a reliable traffic demand forecast and valid comparison of before and after mobility impact of four lanes vs six lanes - signals or modern roundabouts . . .
1) The MPO cost/benefit mission of safer smoother traffic flow soonest is best met, 2) Venice residents’ deserved congestion relief is best served,3) The multimodal principles of this MPO’s adopted 2035 Long Range Transportation Plan best honored. Key: An MPO selection of a proved better cost/benefit/risk could achieve the relief sought by Venice while freeing up several million dollars for waiting US 41 mobility needs from Palmetto to the Charlotte County line.
T
US 41 @ Venice Ave before widening
Unlike this photo, which you can observe
happening on the ByPass four-lanes this
very day, Modern Roundabouts keep the
traffic flowing without stopping around
the clock -- vehicles constantly move
through the intersection as pictured in the bannder on the next page. View the movement in thie Clearwarter video
