Letters to the Editor | Sound off: Another bridge

We asked you for your traffic solutions in the April 2 editorial, “Forget the Legacy Trail: We need another bridge,” and you responded.

Keep the traffic talk going by emailing your solutions to Managing Editor Robin Hartill at [email protected].

Bridge would only benefit Longboaters

Dear Editor:

A bridge to LBK would only benefit the residents of LBK. If you continue the drive beyond City Island, the traffic drops off markedly as you enter the sleepy village of LBK that has little to offer in the way of entertainment or restaurants. And be careful what you wish for, as a bridge to LBK would provide an alternate path to St. Armands, which would create more noise and congestion for the locals of LBK.

Jay Bowman

Sarasota

Put Siesta bridge in the fast lane

Dear Editor:

Could this be any more of an asinine idea? Sounds like it’s driven by residents of Longboat Key who don’t want to have to wait two minutes longer than need be. The traffic on Siesta Key is much worse. Siesta Key is the area that is getting all the publicity and increased traffic, yet the parking situation in the village and the beach is far more dire than traffic problems. Siesta is the new diamond of Sarasota; it is where money needs to be invested. Traffic is on the brink of increasing drastically with all the international press we’ve been getting. The new beach renovation is wonderful but too little too late if you ask me. 

The Legacy Trail is a great investment, too. The bigger it is made, the more usage it will get, and the bigger attraction it will become. It will be great if it links up all the way to Fort Myers. 

Longboat is still dead five months out of the year, whereas Siesta is starting to stay busy all summer. 

Living on a barrier island that is becoming very popular is going to have some traffic headaches. If you don’t like it, move. There will always be someone else who will love it and buy it.

Brian Wigelsworth

Siesta Key Crystal Classic founder and sand coordinator

Solution: Ferrytale ending

Dear Editor:

Have car ferries like they have in Lake Como, Italy. The beautiful vistas there do not get ruined by big bridges. And, car ferries allow for easy adjustments in routes. Start with a main ferry from the downtown area to Ken Thompson Park. Later, add another ferry from Centennial Park to Longboat Key. Later, add ferry stops where needed, like the Siesta Key/North Bridge area or a place near St. Armands Circle. The best part: Ferries can also carry people without cars, so if strategically placed, people can simply walk to their destination with the help of a ferry. Oh — and another great part: Ferry stops don’t take up much property!!

Please, no more bridges. We’re due to have a ferry system.

Sandy Benz 

Sarasota

Officials need tunnel vision

Dear Editor:

I found the article in Thursday’s Longboat Observer, “We need another bridge,” interesting and thought-provoking. 

As I see it, the issue is present traffic (in large measure from regions north of Longboat Key) along Gulf of Mexico Drive exceeds capacity of the road and St. Armands circle. But, it is the shortest route to Sarasota for many. Add to this the problems in the vicinity of the Cortez Bridge.

Aside from letting matters continue as they are, there are two solutions: a) Provide more highway capacity; and b) reduce the number of vehicles using LBK and St. Armands. The first is neither practical nor possible given the property this would require. You have discussed the bridge plan somewhat in your article in the Observer. 

I would like to suggest another possibility to be considered: a tunnel!

The water in the region between LBK and the mainland is rather shallow, and water pressure would be minimal. Also, I would consider locating a tunnel directed toward the Sarasota-Bradenton airport. I believe the cost of such an undertaking would be less than a comparable bridge.

Milton Harr

Emeritus professor of civil engineering, Purdue University

Longboat Key

Give car ferries the green light

Dear Editor:

Ferry boats — all day and into the evening with bike/cycle/golf cart rentals on either end. Bridges make jobs once, and repairs are costly.

Ferry boats are in keeping with tourism and transportation, make work for people that is continuous, can involve private/public partnerships and encourage people to get out of their cars, which means less congestion on both sides of the “proposed bridge.”

What is the sense of being in Florida sunshine if the entire time is spent in the car? Might as well be in Boise, Idaho.

Dale Orlando

Sarasota

Dale Orlando

Sarasota

+Bridge or causeway could span the distance

Dear Editor:

Ideally, another high-span bridge to Longboat from either 10th or 12th Street in Satasota is the answer to the increasing traffic issues, particularly between Longboat key and the Sarasota mainland, but the distance is long and costs would be high. However, perhaps another option to consider would be a causeway from the general location of Bird Key Park to City Island. The water is shallow at that location, it would not necessitate a high span as it wouldn’t traverse the Intercoastal, and although it wouldn’t entirely alleviate the traffic issue at U.S. 41 and Gulfstream, it would bypass St. Armands Circle and would afford an alternate route for the construction and service vehicles which make up the bulk of the traffic to Longboat and north especially around 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Susan Gilmore

Longboat Key