Vision Zero in Gainesville and Alachua County

Following conversations in which the Alachua County Commission Chair and Gainesville Commissioner reported they had been struck by cars in separate incidences while cycling in Gainesville, Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward declared a “point of emergency on our roadways.” Mayor Ward called the situation a “traffic violence crisis in our community,” spurring the commissioners to take immediate actions and support initiatives to improve safety throughout roadways in the county, according to the publication Alachua County Today.

About the Traffic Crisis 

In one week in January 2023, three pedestrians were killed in Gainesville, according to news reports. One was a woman walking her dog. Another was a child walking to a park. The third was a hit-and-run. Students at the University of Florida have taken notice, repeatedly reporting on the crisis in the student paper, The Independent Florida Alligator, and particularly on accidents happening on University Avenue. Traffic data reveals that this street alone has triple the statewide crash rate for other roads and has observed 70 pedestrian crashes since 2016, seven of which were fatal. 

Changes on the Horizon

In 2018, the committee adopted the Vision Zero Policy with the goal of not having any serious injuries or traffic deaths in Gainesville by 2040. On January 23, 2023, the commissioners voted unanimously to find ways to pay for engineering, education, and traffic improvements in Alachua County, an action that represents their goal to achieve Vision Zero. 

Some of the anticipated changes and initiatives in Alachua County include:

• Forming a Joint Information Center to collaborate and share information among multiple agencies
• Making University Avenue a Complete Street, which requires parties to carefully plan, design, operate, and maintain the roadways so that roads are safe for all road users, an initiative supported by the federal government, which has provided an $8 million grant to the City of Gainesville through the U.S. Department of Transportation due to concerns over rising pedestrian accidents on the road
• Collaborating with an engineering firm to create a study on making University Avenue a Complete Street
• Adopting new guidelines for sidewalk lights in newly developed areas, which are designed to make roads safer for bicyclists and pedestrians at night 
• Leading corridor walks to focus on plans to redesign certain roads to improve pedestrian and cyclist safety
• Applying for funds to resurface and restripe roadways for a Complete Streets redesign

Hopefully, with these initiatives, the streets of Gainesville will soon be safer for our city’s pedestrians and cyclists. 

Contact a Gainesville Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

If you have been struck by a vehicle in Gainesville, please contact the Gainesville pedestrian and bicycle accident attorneys at Fine, Farkash, & Parlapiano today to schedule a free consultation. We are members of the Gainesville Cycling Club, regularly bike to work, and frequently take cycling vacations. We are personally invested in making sure our roads are safe for all Gainesville cyclists, and we love representing cyclists. 

Our lawyers have a wealth of experience in handling pedestrian and cyclist accident cases and will work to ensure that you are fairly compensated for any injuries you suffer on Gainesville roadways.