The Florida Department of Transportation is asking from community feedback on some alternatives for Orange Ave in the Downtown South Area.
The portion of Orange Ave that is being looked at is the two-mile stretch between Anderson St and Pineloch Ave.
The study involves developing alternatives to the current road and road infrastructure.
“The goal is to increase safety and efficiencies on Orange Avenue,” said FDOT spokesperson Steve Olson. “The average daily traffic count, based on Florida Traffic Online stats from 2012, shows about 36,000 vehicles a day using the road on the south end of the study area, just south of Michigan, to about 32,000 vehicles a day traveling the northern end of the corridor.”
Some of the goals include:
- Reduction in number of crashes
- Lower & consistent speed
- Reduce mid-block crossings
- Increase space between sidewalk and travel lane
- Adding medians & more greenscape/hardscape
- Reduce intersection delay
- Additional turn lanes
- Remove bus loading/unloading from traffic lanes
At a meeting tonight the state will present two alternatives:
- Alternative 1 — Basic Alternative
- Restripe to create consistent 10 foot travel lanes
- Additional on-street parking where applicable
- Select median treatments where feasible
- Bus flex lanes where applicable
- Alternative 2 — Ultimate Alternative (includes everything in Alternative 1)
- Curb extensions to create consistent 10 foot travel lanes / enhanced aesthetics
- Intersection improvements at Grant St, Kaley St, Miller St and Gore St
- Consolidation of Lynx stops
“Consistency in lane size and speed limits is mentioned in the study. Moving buses out of the travel lanes, to lanes where buses can pull off and out of traffic, as well combining bus stops, are mentioned, which would increase safety and efficiency,” said Olson.
The community is invited tonight to learn more about the alternatives and provide feedback. The meeting is from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Beardall Senior Center located at 800 S. Delaney Avenue, Orlando. FL 32801. The meeting begins as an open house at 5:00 p.m. with a presentation describing the different project alternatives at 6:00 p.m.
Olson said the goal is to get community feedback and then move forward with local partners to make the needed changes.
“The next steps involve prioritizing the list, ranking the possibilities as long-term and short-term, and working with the regional transportation planning organization, Metroplan, to fund and implement those the community and planners agree should be done,” he said.
UPDATE: Here are some clearer pictures of the alternatives (click on the images for larger versions):
Basic Alternatives:
Ultimate Alternatives:
@Diane Jagiela Perez That’s not going to show up on this transportation plan but the city has a coordinated planning effort that’s part of the motivation for this.
http://www.cityoforlando.net/planning/cityplanning/Downtown%20South%20NID.htm
http://www.cityoforlando.net/planning/cityplanning/south%20downtown%20VisionPL.htm
They are trying to have more of a focus on pedestrians, but I’m not sure they’re going far enough. The idea of “reducing the number midblock crossings” is a terrible one. What they need to do is make crossing midblock safe because a) people are not going to stop crossing midblock, and b) there are not enough crossing with traffic lights to be pedestrian friendly. Also do they really mean “midblock” or do they mean between traffic lights. They’re not the same thing. Technically it’s legal for pedestrian two cross anywhere in this corridor because there are lots of crossing with no traffic light.
I also question the idea of adding turn lanes and the idea of focusing on intersection capacity. For the most part those are band-aids. Induced demand will ensure any new capacity gets clogged in short order.
They are proposing adding on-street parking in several places which is positive as well as some curb extensions.
gymcorridor Sorry if it wasn’t clear in the article but that is a main focus for FDOT here is the top portion of the flyer I linked to.
typical FDOT, the “improvements” never mention people or pedestrians – same old suburban mentality of moving cars only
http://www.cflroads.com/project/241152-1
Please, please, please move the cycling lanes away from traffic. I love to cycle through this fantastic city but there should be more than a white line between a ten tonne truck and my life. Perhaps, the Scandinavian model of walk/cycle/road lanes being divided by barriers is an option?
do you have the website address? thanks!
Hi Donna, I added the rendering from their site on the story because they were way to large to link to and download.
can you share the website, its cut off the thing you posted. It would have nice had they sent out a notice to all the neighbors!! did they discuss what they are thinking regarding Kaley and Orange – we have too much high speed traffic through our neighborhood now.
Not in this plan….but one of the things we know is that by creating more of a community feel to our Orlando Main Streets more great businesses will follow. Making it safe to get around is a must have to see an area grow and develop.
it takes me 45 mins+ in rush hour to go from mccoy/orange north to college park’s lakeview st…exactly 9 miles, with the majority of my headache being around belle isle/sodo. what gives…
I have walked from SoDo shops to Radio Shack & back, safer on foot than in my car ~ also detest leaving McCoy Federal CU and heading east on Michigan because you have to get back onto Orange southbound to take that left & it’s so very dangerous, even when lights are red, people don’t leave curb cuts open to turns in and out!
I can’t tell by the photo but does the plan include adding any new stores or restaurants?
Less road, more crosswalks and sidewalks, rapid transit buses every 15 minutes