Buckle up. We've got huge news this week, and it's all good.
First of all, for the dozens of you who have asked - no, pleaded - for a left-turn lane for northbound traffic at South Fort Harrison Avenue and Pinellas Street, one of the main entrances to the Morton Plant Hospital campus, the state roadies understand your pain.
We received this information from spokeslady Kris Carson:
South Fort Harrison Avenue, now a state road, will be transferred to the city of Clearwater when the new Memorial Causeway Bridge is completed, which should happen next July.
There is an ongoing resurfacing project on Alt. 19, from West Bay Drive to Drew Street. At the request of the city of Clearwater, the state roadies will stripe the new pavement in the northern portion of the project to provide a single lane in each direction and a center, two-way, left lane. That will provide left-turning traffic at Pinellas Street with a place to get out of the way of through traffic.
After all that is done, there will be a study to determine how well the new intersection is working. If the study indicates that a left-turn traffic signal phase is needed, you'll get that, too.
A small cheer from that area of the county is perfectly appropriate at this point.
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More good news from the state roadies for those of you who live or visit the beaches.
We wrote about the roughness of the new pavement in the northbound lanes of Blind Pass Road from, roughly, 82nd to 90th avenues.
The aforementioned Ms. Carson tells us this:
Some roadie inspectors checked out that section of pavement and found that, while it is a rough ride, it does meet state specifications. The reason it isn't as smooth as most new asphalt is that asphalt is normally put down with big machines that have big rollers that both roll and vibrate. That creates a degree of compaction that gives the smooth ride.
But when this asphalt was put down, the contractor had to turn off the vibration function in order to protect St. Pete Beach's old clay pipe sanitary sewer system that runs beneath the road.
However, on further consideration, the roadies have told the contractor to mill up and replace that section. So what you thought was finished road will be torn up again for a little while, but when it is put down again, it should be a smoother ride.
Isn't good news wonderful?
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While we're hopping all over south county, we also got an explanation for a Largo resident about the absence of a "No U-Turn" sign on Seminole Boulevard at 104th Avenue. The reader said she thought this was a dangerous place.
According to the state, crash data doesn't support that notion.
There is a No U-Turn sign at 106th Avenue because that intersection is skewed, or offset a bit, and crash data indicates that U-turns there have caused problems.
Hope this helps.
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About once a month we hear from a reader who is either (a) complaining about people who speed on Central Avenue through downtown St. Petersburg or (b) complaining about how low the speed limits are on Central Avenue through downtown St. Petersburg.
So we thought you all might be interested in the viewpoint of St. Petersburg police Officer J.W. "Jack" Soule, who is assigned to the downtown area, where he patrols in a police golf cart, a marked police cruiser and on foot - not all, presumably, at the same time.
"A serious problem that I have noted," Jack writes, "is the excessive speed of vehicles traveling east and westbound along Central Avenue between 16th Street and Bayshore Boulevard. The posted speed limit on Central Avenue between 16th Street and (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street) is 20 mph, with the posted speed limit between (King Street) and the water (Bayshore Boulevard) reduced to 15 mph.
"Many vehicles exceed this limit especially east of (King Street), which is a hazard to vehicular and pedestrian traffic in the area. With angular parking along both sides of Central Avenue at times causing an inability to clearly see approaching traffic when backing out of a parking spot, along with the increased pedestrian foot traffic as one gets closer to the heart of downtown, the 15 mph speed limit is more than appropriate.
"I can tell you that police are presently working to improve the visibility of speed limit signs in this area, and will be working specific traffic assignments to monitor speed (with radar and laser speed detectors).
"I would like to see you make mention of this concern to your readers, as well as informing them police will be monitoring the situation closely."
So be warned.
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Ouch.
If you're traveling eastbound on Fifth Avenue S (and if you're traveling westbound you're going the wrong way on a one-way street) be very careful as you approach Second Street. Someone dug a trench on Fifth Avenue and then filled it, but the replaced pavement has sunk, creating a depression that stretches across all the lanes.
If you hit it with any speed, especially coming off Interstate 175 and catching a green light at Fourth Street S, you are going to lose a filling and loosen some chassis bolts.
Jiminy!
And this is our Eyeball Jiggler of the Week.
- Dr. Delay can be reached by e-mail at docdelay@sptimes.com by fax at 727 893-8675 or by snail mail at 490 First Ave., S, St. Petersburg 33701.
