SARASOTA, Fla. — Sarasota city officials want to hear from people who live in the Shade Avenue corridor near the Legacy Trail.
The city has launched an online survey to crowd-source suggestions on what to do about the traffic circle at a small intersection along that road.
Many neighbors said it is a problem area and drivers are not paying attention to the signs alerting them about the circle.
"If anybody knows about that circle, it's me," Dawn Buchroeder said.
Buchroeder has lived in the neighborhood near Shade Avenue and Novus Street for more than 30 years.
"It used to be a four-way and there were so many accidents...that's why they put the circle in," she said.
However, she says the circle hasn't solved the traffic safety problem at the intersection.
Buchroeder said despite several signs urging drivers to slow down, yield, or look out for pedestrians and cyclists, many drivers are often speeding through. Additionally, with the perimeter of the circle worn out and blended into the road, the circle is not very visible which can become a complication for drivers especially with longer service vehicles to navigate.
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"For some reason, cars are not seeing them and I don't think they're doing it on purpose. It's not an on-purpose thing. I think it is just that they are just not seeing what's there and sometimes people just run right over the circle," Buchroeder said.
The Shade Avenue corridor is among 4 priority areas identified in the city's complete street project plan approved in 2020. Neighbors have long complained about how hazardous the roadway there is.
"The circle is very small, and a roundabout was something that we explored but unfortunately, because of the right of way that particular intersection has, we cannot accommodate something bigger than that," Alvimarie Corales, the city's chief transportation planner, said.
City officials said they now have plans to remove the circle and hope to learn what improvements the community wants to see for the intersection.
Options under consideration for the improvement of the intersection include raised crosswalks, traffic separators, or a combination of both. In the online survey, residents and commuters are asked to choose what they would consider the most preferable enhancements for that corridor.
With more than 150 cyclists and 200 pedestrians using the corridor daily, officials say the overall goal is to enhance road safety and create connectivity to the nearby Legacy Trail.
"We've heard from the community that they wanted wider sidewalks. As you can see, there are some of the sidewalks that are too narrow and there are other sidewalks there that are non-existent. We have the west side of the corridor that doesn't have sidewalks and it's very staggering throughout the entire Shade Avenue corridor," Corales added.
Neighbors like Buchroeder hope the road improvements will come with other safety enhancements to alert drivers to approach the area with more caution.
"Maybe they need a flashing light, a light, any light. That's all I can think of because they did the four-way stop, they did the circle, but it's the lights that catch people's attention. That's why they are stopping at the Legacy Trail because they see the lights," Buchroeder explained.
To find out more about the survey or fill it out click here.