To All:
Speeding in our neighborhood
I don't know if the neighborhood is aware of the severe speeding problem we have on El Prado, on which I live. So please allow me to give you a little background.
It has been ranked by the City DOT as one of the top ten worst streets for speeding, in Tampa. This means 85% of the drivers are going faster than 40 mph !!! It is posted 30 mph. Would highway patrol allow you to speed 30% faster than 60 mph on the highway (i.e. 80 mph)? NOT. The DOT documented the speeding problem at least 10 times with speed determining instruments (rubber hoses hooked to a machine). It is one of the worst because of both the extreme speeds (3 cars going 60 mph in a 24 hour period), 85% are speeding, and because of the large volume of cars. Imagine the amount of speeders there are in a 24 hour period x 7 days!
El Prado is a unique situation. It is a residential street, not a truck route, but is 4 lanes??? Obviously someone in the City DOT made a big mistake by making it a four lane, which encourages drivers to pass, and speed. It used to be a two lane and there was very little speeding then. You can imagine how dangerous it is to go to your mailbox at the street, when the majority of cars are coming at you at 40 mph!!! This is obviously a death waiting to happen. Or trying to back out of your driveway safely. It's like backing out onto Dale Mabry! The Church Street intersection has proved to be very dangerous with all of the accidents there; such as a car smashing into my same neighbors front porch, several times. Several pedestrians have been hit crossing El Prado and several have died.
This is not just a problem, it is an epidemic. It is a re-occurring, life threatening situation.
(By the way, I have to give props to Spencer for the help in controling speeding on El Prado)
My point is, if any neighborhood money is to be spent on speeding, it should be El Prado first. It has already qualified for speed reduction devices, but the city had no budget. Unlike most other Virginia Park streets, El Prado is used mostly by non-residents, and as a cut thru. Speeding on any of our neighborhood streets, depreciates home values and desirability for all of us.
It once was a beautiful residential street with large oak trees. Now it is a highway with the trees being hit and shaped by illegal trucks using it as a short cut. Even though it is NOT a truck route and No Trucks signs are posted.
Enforcement definitely helps but police can't be there 24/7, so traffic calming devices are really the answer.
I sure you will agree, speeding is a much more important situation than street beatification, or park beatification, or sidewalk construction (see my next paragraph below to Phil), because this is a life threatening situation that effects about 60 neighborhood association members directly, EVERY DAY, not occasionally, like other projects such as park use would.
To Phildawg:
I guess you didn't know that the El Prado residents don't want another sidewalk on the north side of El Prado, when there already is one on the south side. It has been voted down everytime, so I don't know why it is still lingering??? It is very expensive to install, and doesn't have much bang for the buck. For example, installing a bike lane on el Prado is much cheaper and more desirable. Many bike riders (groups of 5 - 20) use El Prado as part of their 10 mile loop thru south Tampa. Also many neighborhood residents use it for bike riding too.
Since money is the limiting factor, I would spend money on items that affect our neighborhood residents the most and has the most bang for the buck. So I would rank them this way:
- 1 Speed controlling devices on El Prado
- 2 Speed controlling devices on other streets
- 3 Beatification of our parks.
- 4 Beautification of our neighborhood
Resurfacing is not worth the huge expense, and signage never does anything, unless it is enforced.
Heck, if everyone in the association donated an extra plant to Corona Park, it would look great in no time! I'm willing to donate plants, and I don't even use the park! Stuff grows so fast here in Florida, planting small oak trees can be very cost effective, for beautification.
Thanks for your time, Brian and Charlotte 813-928-0857 bwirsch@netzero.net
PS I believe a strong neighborhood is made strong, by helping each other. If there is anything we can do for you regarding real estate investing, stock investing, remodeling, recreation ideas, or illnesses (my wife has three rare medical conditions and has been diagnosed with 100 different ones), don't hesitate to write or call.
