Town goal: Buy GMD

This obviously was a rough season — on the road. 

The subject of traffic just won’t go away. That was clearly evident Monday at the Longboat Key Town Commission’s annual goals and objectives session. 

Doing something about traffic was one of the dominant themes of the requests from town organizations and homeowners’ associations.

Not to the deflate their hopes, Longboat commissioners reminded attendees the town has no control over the traffic originating off the Key or of Gulf of Mexico Drive.

Nonetheless, it was good to see Mayor Jack Duncan at the same day’s Town Commission workshop vow to address what has become another critical traffic issue: Longboat’s four Gulf of Mexico Drive crosswalks.

Thanks to Mayor Duncan’s passion and persuasion, he won the consensus Monday of his fellow commissioners to pressure the Florida Department of Transportation to remove the four death-trap crosswalks installed six months ago on Gulf of Mexico Drive.

It’s difficult to find anyone who has lived on Longboat Key for two years or more to think the crosswalks are an improvement to pedestrian safety.

Why, even Longboat Key’s chief of police, Peter Cummings, told town commissioners they are a safety hazard.

Consider this latest near tragedy: At the southern crosswalk near a Country Club Shores entrance, a family of four, including two small children, started crossing Gulf of Mexico Drive. A northbound motorist slowed for the family as he approached the crosswalk. 

But just as he did this, the motorist behind him veered into the center of the Gulf of Mexico Drive and accelerated to pass the slowing motorist. 

Thankfully, a horrible tragedy was averted.

Unfortunately, that was not an anomaly. Near misses and confusion are the norm.

From the day the crosswalks were installed, we have argued they clearly have achieved the opposite of what was intended. They have made Gulf of Mexico Drive more dangerous than ever.

Indeed, we have always questioned why they were needed, especially when you consider that for the town’s previous 60 years of incorporation, the vast majority of Longboat Key residents and visitors have managed to cross Gulf of Mexico Drive safely  by employing that tried-and-true method of common sense:  ambulator emptor — walker beware.

It works.

We could not — and still do not — understand what changed so dramatically that the crosswalks suddenly were a necessity. Longboat Key has fewer hotel visitors than it had two decades ago. Longboat Key has fewer year-round residents than it had two decades ago. And Longboat Key has fewer retailers and businesses than it had two decades ago.

There was no obvious demand for them.

But it likely won’t be easy removing the crosswalks. FDOT is a gigantic, slow-moving organization. (It is responsible for more than 40,000 miles of roadway in this vast state.) And you can imagine FDOT officials won’t be anxious to throw away the $1 million invested to design, purchase and install the crosswalks.

Good luck, mayor. Be persistent.

And while the mayor is at it, why not go all the way? Here’s another suggestion to lay on FDOT’s table: 

An offer to purchase Gulf of Mexico Drive from the state. 

Own it and control it.

Just imagine what good that could mean … toll gates at both ends; limited pass-through motorists; maintenance when and how the town wants it.