HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Friday is the last chance for community members to weigh in on pedestrian safety changes coming to the area around three school campuses on Big Bend Road.
The work is part of the School Route Pedestrian/Bike Safety Improvements Project.
The focus of the plan is students who live within two miles of their school and are not eligible to ride the bus.
"For a school district, they do not provide funding for providing school buses within that 2 mile radius," explained Bob Campbell, Hillsborough County transportation engineering manager.
He said crews examine roads and routes near 100 schools in the county.
"We're systematically going through each of the ranked schools and looking at a 2-mile radius from the school, trying to find out different ways that we can improve safety of the kids walking to and from schools and give parents a sense of security that their kids can walk safely from their home to school," Campbell said.
County leaders propose low-cost, easily implemented safety solutions that will help students at East Bay High School, Eisenhower Middle School, and Corr Elementary Schools. They're suggesting marked crosswalks, flashing signs and curb improvements.
According to Campbell the changes can be installed quickly while they work on long term fixes for the issues.
"We have a high rate of pedestrian crashes in the county," he said. "We ranked, I think, 7th in the state of Florida in pedestrian crashes and deaths. These kinds of simple things will help the driver recognize a potential problem they may have to face and make a quick decision."
Community members can review the proposed plans and provide feedback through August 22. School Route Ped/Bike Safety Improvements Project - East Bay High School, Corr Elementary, and Eisenhower Middle School Safety - PublicInput
