One of the teams I serve on is the Polk Vision Infrastructure Team. This team works in partnership with the TPO to advocate for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety. One of our priority projects currently is evaluating the need for sidewalks around a one-mile radius of Polk County’s public schools.

This is incredibly important given this simple fact. The Lakeland – Winter Haven Metropolitan Area is ranked as the 5th most dangerous area for pedestrians and bicyclists in the nation. ? Check out the infographic above for more details.

Thankfully, in Bartow, we are in a little better position than some of our other neighboring communities. That is not to say we don’t still have our issues with pedestrian safety.

One of the projects that we are advocating for is a pedestrian bridge for the Fort Fraser trail over Highway 60. This project is still working its way through the process. This would be a great way to get traffic from the trail closer to our downtown. (Now we need to see about extending the trail the rest of the way south!)

Good News for Pedestrian Safety

One of the most interesting things from today’s meeting was the work that the Infrastructure Team has produced around sidewalks near schools. Working with a consultant, the TPO overlayed data from the school board on top of GIS maps showing the location of current sidewalks to produce a series of maps showing the need.

Bartow has pretty good coverage of school adjacent sidewalks. However, there is one section south of Bartow Middle School where I am really hoping to get a section of sidewalk built. Soledad and Hermosa are busy streets. I hate seeing kids walking on the road to and from school. Especially in the early mornings.

The city will begin our strategic planning sessions next week. Hopefully, some of this data on pedestrian and bike safety can help ensure we get the sidewalks were they are most needed.