- November 23, 2024
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Not surprisingly, we heard last week from Longboat Key Mayor George Spoll about our referring to him as “blustery.” Said he: “I would describe it as passionate.”
OK, give him that, to be sure.
But we also heard from Spoll regarding another Barrier Islands Elected Officials meeting on traffic — this one on the Florida Department of Transportation and the Sarasota-Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Barrier Island Traffic Study.
Positions haven’t changed, Spoll noted. His counterpart in Bradenton Beach, John Chappie, remains steadfast in his defense of the Bradenton Beach roundabout, which Spoll (and others) contends is a key cause of traffic stretching from Bradenton Beach and into Longboat Key.
But as former Mayor Terry Gans correctly stated in a Letter to the Editor, the Cortez Bridge and the stoplight at Gulf Drive and Cortez Road also contribute to the mess. Likewise, Gans is correct to say that making enemies with our neighbors won’t solve problems.
As Donald Trump showed this week, diplomacy can work — although we don’t recommend calling Chappie “Rocket Man” or other Trumpisms.
Sure, the Town Commission should continue to lobby FDOT and work with Bradenton Beach and Sarasota to ameliorate the traffic backups in their cities that greatly affect Longboaters.
But if improvements are to occur, Longboat officials should remember this business truism: Whenever a sales representative speaks to a potential customer, the sales rep is always wise to imagine the prospect with these words on the prospect’s forehead: “What’s in it for me?”
The Longboat Key Town Commission recently submitted these traffic requests to the Florida Department of Transportation:
1. Pedestrian Management-St. Armands Circle — Assignment of pedestrian control officers at the crosswalks on St. Armands Circle during seasonal peak traffic flows. (This was implemented in the past but improved coordination and training of officers will provide even better results.)
2. Pedestrian Management-Bridge Street in Bradenton Beach — Similar seasonal pedestrian control near the Bridge Street Circle.
3. Removal of at least the seven previously identified parking spaces along the west leg of St. Armands Circle toward Lido Beach. This has been supported in the past but not yet implemented.
Timing of the removal could occur in conjunction with the opening of the new St. Armands Circle parking structure later this year.
4. Coquina-Bradenton Beach Access — Implement seasonal peak traffic parking and pedestrian management controls to assist with the ingress and egress and associated traffic flow congestions.
1. An additional, flexible third lane on future relevant bridge replacements.
2. Elevated above-grade pedestrian crossings at key intersections on the U.S. 41 corridor from Ringling Boulevard to Fruitville Road.
