FDOT to host Oct. 15 hybrid public meeting for proposed safety improvements to University Avenue
Press release from Florida Department of Transportation
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will host a public meeting to discuss proposed safety improvements on University Avenue (State Road 26) from Waldo Road (State Road 24) to Southeast 31st Street.
FDOT and the City of Gainesville propose the following improvements:
- Traffic signal adjustments
- Crossing enhancement and addition of new crossings
- Addition of bicycle facilities
- Median modifications
- Sidewalk widening
- Intersection modifications
The hybrid public meeting will be held Tuesday, Oct. 15, at the Gainesville Technology Entrepreneurship Center (GTEC), 2153 SE Hawthorne Rd. Ste 101, Gainesville, FL 32641. Project staff will be available to answer questions and accept comments in person or online at www.nflroads.com/VPH.
The public may attend anytime between 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. to learn more about the scope of the project improvements, offer input, and view conceptual renderings of the projects. A formal presentation and public comment period for both in-person and virtual participants will begin at 6 p.m.
Public meetings provide the public with an opportunity to express their views on the project, its potential for impact, and other related matters. All participants, regardless of the platform they choose, will receive the same information on the proposed project, and all comments received in-person, virtually, or electronically will be given equal consideration.
Public comments may be submitted online at nflroads.com/VPH, via phone to Deborah Leistner at (352) 393-8412, by email at leistnerdl@cityofgainesville.org, by traditional mail at 5007 NE 39th Ave, Gainesville, FL 32609, or at nflroads.com/VPH. All exhibits or statements postmarked on or before Oct. 26, 2024, will become part of the public hearing record.
Public participation is solicited without regard to race, color, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability or family status.
Stay informed about lane closures and roadwork in your area by following FDOT District 2 at @MyFDOT_NEFL on X , or at MyFDOTNEFL on Facebook.
There is zero foot traffic or bike traffic along this section of road, which is already a busy east-west corridor.
Wasting money on widening the sidewalk makes no sense (why, so the bums can stretch their legs out?). Neither does adding more crossings (for who??) or bike facilities (again, for who??).
That money would be better spent repaving the same length of 53rd Avenue, which has miles of deep tire grooves whether you are east-bound or west-bound. During the rainy season, the grooves fill with water and make traveling seriously hazardous.
Even in larger vehicles you have to take care not to cross into the groove, or you risk hydroplaning into oncoming 55 mph traffic.
I agree, no one rides anything out east. The roadway is already improved. If only pedestrians obey the crosswalk and traffic light signals. 53rd is in bad shape and has always been that way with the grooves that fill up. Lots of truck traffic on that road.
It’s called a “charette”, which is French for “pretend to get public input before doing whatever you were going to anyway so you can later claim it was a mandate”.
I agree, it’s a major east-west throughway that has been made all but unusable by recent “improvements”, diverting traffic to other roads that don’t have adequate capacity.
I don’t have an answer to the short-sighted development that’s been done to cause this, but the first role of being in a hole is, “Stop digging.”
We have plenty of pedestrian traffic and bicyclists on this stretch of road. A child was killed trying to cross East University Avenue back in October 2021. Those who actually live in this neighborhood and participated in the community walk with FDOT and law enforcement to discuss possible improvements are excited about the project that will, hopefully, increase pedestrian safety.