If you’re a frequent traveler of A1A, you might want to rethink your travels. According to the Sun Sentinel, construction crews will be working along that roadway from now through the first week of May. It’s all in an effort to correct the damage that was caused by Hurricane Sandy and the other storm we experienced last fall.
“This will be the most noticeable work that’s taken place so far,” said Barbara Kelleher with FDOT. “You may feel the vibration.”
Our Fort Lauderdale pedestrian accident lawyers understand the dangers A1A presents to bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists — particularly now as we reach the height of tourist season. It’s an old road, often crowded and frequently antiquated. Add thousands of tourists, springbreakers and other revelers, and traffic collisions are commonplace.
This work is going to be taking place from Northeast 14th Court to 18th Street, north of Sunrise Boulevard. It seems a little inconvenient to do this work during this part of the year. Not only do road construction areas increase our risks for accidents, but when you add in all of the traffic that’s going to be in the area, the risks skyrocket. For this reason, we’re asking motorists to avoid the area altogether. If you must travel along this road, make sure you do so as safely as possible.
Crews will be out along our roadways from Monday through Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. On Sundays, they won’t start work until 9:00 a.m. and they’ll wrap up at 7:00 p.m.
This part of the road will stay open during construction. Driver are to beware of the changing speed limits — which will be reduced to 25 miles per hour.
Before we got slammed by Hurricane Sandy, there were only two lanes of travel heading in each direction. When this construction phase is over, we’re going to have more travel lanes, more turning lanes and more bike lanes. We will also get to hang on to our pedestrian sidewalk and parallel parking.
The job is going to cost about $8.5 million.
Each year, there are close to 30,000 traffic accidents that are reported in Broward County. Travelers in Miami-Dade face even worse — reporting close to 45,000 accidents each year. Many of these accidents are preventable and are caused by driver inattention and driver carelessness. Pay attention to the traffic around you and be extra cautious in areas with roadwork.
It’s going to wind up costing you if you’re not careful. When passing through areas with roadwork, you want to be on your best behavior and focus you attention on the road and on your surroundings. This isn’t a time to engage in distractions. There’s going to be a lot of traffic out there in the next month with Spring Break approaching. There’s going to be many motorists in from out of town. With their unfamiliarity of our roadways, accidents are likely. We all need to remain one step ahead of the traffic around us to help to reduce our risks for accidents and help to keep our South Florida roadways safe.
If you or someone you love has been injured or killed in a car accident, contact Richard Ansara at 954 761-3641 or toll-free at 877-277-3780 for a free and confidential consultation.
More Blog Entries:
Buying a New Car: Don’t Forget to Check the Safety Ratings!, Broward Injury Lawyer Blog, January 13, 2013
Seat Belts: Saving Lives in Broward, Broward Injury Lawyer Blog, November 30, 2012