People who live in the area of the stretch of State Road 70 that runs from Loraine Road to County Road 675 frequently refer to it as a nightmare. Thousands of vehicles traverse that 6.1 mile corridor every day, and residents of the Greenbrook Village neighborhood say it is especially difficult to turn left out of Post Boulevard. Some have given up doing so altogether.
The Florida Highway Patrol recently had an accident site at that exact intersection, and there have been several other crashes in the area in recent weeks. Officials say the area sees at least one accident every other week, primarily due to speeding in rush hour times. Traffic has become so bad in the area in part because of a lot of new development.
Relief is coming… eventually
The good news is that the Florida Department of Transportation allocated $10.2 million to improve highway safety on S.R. 70 on that stretch of road. However, the project won’t begin until 2023, which means residents of the area are left high and dry until then.
For its part, FDOT did announce it will make temporary safety changes to the road, with signs warning drivers about upcoming intersections. FDOT believes the signs will help slow down drivers, but residents of the area are skeptical, saying the signs don’t actually tell drivers to change their habits—they just provide information.
There are certain situations in which municipalities can be held liable for accidents caused by poor road planning or lack of safety measures. For more information about filing a personal injury claim under such circumstances, contact an experienced Manatee County personal injury attorney at Goldman, Babboni, Fernandez & Walsh.