ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – The Audubon Park and Colonialtown neighborhoods are seeing some near misses among pedestrians and drivers.
Orlando resident Casey Leroy said that while she was walking her dogs at the intersection of Bumby and Oregon, a car came so close to hitting them that she was able to reach out her arm and touch the hood of the person’s car to get them to stop.
“A couple of weeks ago, I was walking on Bumby, and I was walking in the crosswalk and somebody just came ripping through, ready to, you know, make a turn onto Bumby,” Leroy said. “And I was walking the girls, and we almost got run over, which was scary. I had to tap on his hood because I was screaming at him, trying to get him to stop.”
Leroy said there are a few improvements she’d like to see to make the area safer for pedestrians and bicyclists.
[EXCLUSIVE: Become a News 6 Insider (it’s FREE) | PINIT! Share your photos]
“It’d be great to see some of the crosswalks a little better repainted or some even some of the stop signs where you can get the holographic of their lights, I think would be really helpful,” Leroy said.
But the residential streets aren’t the only concern. Businesses along Corrine that back up to the Audubon Park School said their back alleyway is a safety hazard for kids leaving school.
“I definitely have concern about how the kids exit the school,” said R. Nichols Shop Co-Owner Nancy Hanniford. “They come flying out over here where there’s a fence and many times you’ll come into the back alley there are parents who pick up their kids back here versus carpool, but there’s also businesses, and there are delivery trucks that are constantly back here, and it’s just a lot of kids that are coming at the same time.”
Hanniford said children have run into her car on occasion.
“They all come out same time, and they’re moving fast,” Hanniford said. “And it’s just not a great environment to keep them safe.”
But there are steps people can take, like requesting a Traffic Calming Study from the City of Orlando.
According to the city’s website, once they’ve been contacted, the transportation engineering division will work to identify the problem, collect data and present a solution.
News 6′s Justin Warmoth reported earlier this year that the city of Orlando was looking at reducing the number of lanes on Corrine Drive in the next few years in the hope of improving pedestrian safety.
The city of Orlando shared a statement with News 6, which said:
“The top priority of the city is safety, and the city’s Transportation Department continuously looks at innovative ways and safe alternatives to navigate throughout city neighborhoods.
As part of the Complete Streets vision for the Corrine Drive corridor, the plan is to transition the roadway from a throughfare to a true complete street designed for people, pedestrians, bicyclists and not just for cars.
The alleyway you refer to in your email is a public right-of-way used for parking and everyday vehicle use and cannot be cordoned off, however, it seems as though some students are using it as a cut-through for bikers and walkers. As mentioned above, as part of the Corrine Drive improvements, our transportation staff will look to create additional protected shared-use biking and walking paths along the Corrine Drive corridor running east and west, which would allow students traveling to and from school to utilize that path. In the meantime, the Transportation Department will take a look at the alleyway to see if any additional signage or safety measures can be put in place.
As the city recognizes the need for safer routes, there have been two previously installed Quick-Build pilot programs along Corrine Drive to meet the immediate needs of the community for additional, safe, bicycle and pedestrian access with a long-term eye toward the transformative Complete Streets project. Quick-Build projects, such as crosswalks, bike lanes and parklets, are all part of Orlando’s Vision Zero efforts to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries within the city by 2040.
The Corrine Drive project will be in the design phase next year, with construction set to begin in 2026.”
City of Orlando
News 6 has reached out to Commissioner Robert Stewart and Commissioner Patty Sheehan, as both of their districts include the Audubon Park and Colonialtown neighborhoods.
In addition, News 6 has reached out to the Orlando Police Department to determine the number of crashes they have investigated in Audubon Park over the last year.
If you live in an area with traffic concerns and would like to request a Traffic Calming Study, click here for more information.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: