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Letter to the editor

City moves to slow drivers on busy road

By LORRI HELFAND
Published June 7, 2007

LARGO - Five or six times a day, Jerry Lanfair takes his life in his hands. He tries to avoid zooming cars as he crosses Clearwater-Largo Road to go to work or grab a bite to eat.

"It's an accident looking for a place to happen, " said Lanfair, 58, who lives at Clearwater Trailer City. "It's just too hazardous."

But maybe not for long.

To make Clearwater-Largo Road safer, Largo leaders have moved to reduce the speed limit north of West Bay Drive from 40 mph to 30 mph.

As work crews spruce up the road with benches, quaint streetlights, palms and other plants, officials want to make the street more pedestrian-friendly.

City commissioners voted 6-1 Tuesday night to give their initial approval to the change. Commissioner Gigi Arntzen cast the dissenting vote.

"Personally, I think it's too slow, " Arntzen said. "I think you're going to end up with a lot of unhappy people."

Some of those unhappy folks were traveling and walking along Clearwater-Largo Road on Wednesday. They said slowing traffic will only make things inconvenient for themselves and others.

"I think it should stay at 40, " said David Wilson, 38, who lives in Spring Hill and works in Pinellas County. "This is a direct route for me." The road already is congested mornings and afternoons, he said.

Matt Molnar, 23, who lives near Clearwater-Largo Road, also said reducing the speed would be a hassle. Many use it as an alternate north-south route to Missouri Avenue, he said.

And Zaph Smith, who also lives near the road, was no fan of the change.

"I just don't think 40 is bad, " said Smith, 35. "I wouldn't go higher than 40, but I wouldn't go lower, either."

But Largo police Sgt. George Edmiston, said 40 mph makes the road unsafe for pedestrians, especially since about 85 percent of drivers routinely go at least 5 mph over the speed limit.

Between the road's already narrow lanes and the newly planted trees in the medians, the road is risky for drivers, too, he said.

"Those palm trees are not going to be forgiving at 40 mph, " he said.

In 2006, there were about 70 crashes on the span of the road from West Bay Drive to Belleair Road, with more than 20 involving injuries, according to the Florida Department of Transportation. The same stretch had 66 crashes in 2005. Clearwater-Largo Road was transferred to the city of Largo's jurisdiction in November.

The reduced speed limit will be up for final approval June 19. If approved, Edmiston said, the city likely will make the new limit effective the following day.

But he said police will focus on education rather than enforcement.

"We're not looking to go out and write tickets, " Edmiston said. "We're looking to educate the folks."

Speed trailers will run for about three weeks, and new signs will be marked with orange flags for about six months. At first, police will issue warnings.

Now, the speed limit for most of the road within Largo and just north of the city is 40 mph.

A tiny stretch of Clearwater-Largo Road near West Bay has a 30 mph speed limit, as does an area north of Lakeview Road, where the street turns into S Fort Harrison Avenue in Clearwater.

The change would create consistency in Largo, but would also leave a small 40 mph section of road between Belleair and Lakeview roads in Clearwater.

The city plans to talk with officials in Clearwater and the county to request consistent speeds on the road, Edmiston said.

Lorri Helfand can be reached at 445-4155 or lorri@sptimes.com.

[Last modified June 6, 2007, 23:39:05]