Personal Injury Law

Roadway safety and Seminole Pratt Whitney Road

By Brian F. LaBovick, Esq.

Two teens leaving Seminole Ridge High School were injured by a vehicle while crossing the very busy Seminole Pratt Whitney Road.  The students used the crosswalk to cross the road, but unfortunately, were not protected from being injured by a car traveling northbound on Seminole Pratt Whitney Road.

According to reports, the police is investigating the accident. Several parents are outraged that more is not being done to protect the safety of student pedestrians crossing Seminole Pratt Road. There are two crosswalks on this road, Seminole Ridge Road Cross walk and Sycamore Road crosswalk. But are they effective in making it safe for student pedestrians crossing Seminole Pratt Whitney Road? 

The Seminole Ridge crosswalk encourages student pedestrians to cross the highway into an area where there is no sidewalk on the other side.It is dangerous that a student pedestrian must walk several hundred yards on the side of a busy road, before reaching a sidewalk.  Some detractors say, "But there is a sidewalk on the other side of the street." However, there is no crosswalk to help pedestrians cross over safely to the other side. Is it safe for a pedestrian to run across busy traffic with no crosswalk?

Governor Charlie Crist signed the Pedestrian Safety Bill (S.B. 154) into law in May 2008, which requires drivers to stop when pedestrian is in the crosswalk. In addition, the Pedestrian Safety Bill (SB 154) amends sections 316.075 & 316.130 of the Florida Statutes and says, 'The driver of a vehicle at any crosswalk where signage so indicates shall stop and remain stopped to allow a pedestrian to cross a roadway when the pedestrian is in the crosswalk or steps into the crosswalk and is upon the half of the roadway upon which the vehicle is traveling or when the pedestrian is approaching so closely from the opposite half of the roadway as to be in danger.' 

Since Seminole Ridge is a High School, it does not qualify for a crossing guard or blinking school zone sign, according to the Palm Beach School District. Should there be an exception, since the speed limit is 45 mph on Seminole Pratt Road and nearly 40 of the 100 accidents on Seminole Pratt Whitney Road have occurred in front of Seminole Ridge High School, since 2007.

What will it take for the safety of students crossing this busy intersection to be put first? Many concerned parents and citizens have asked this question. The blame game and excuses are no longer acceptable and something must be done now.

Concerned citizens and parents are working on ways to make it safer for Seminole Ridge High students crossing Seminole Pratt Whitney Road before and after school.  It should not take the death of a student to make crossing Seminole Pratt Whitney Road safer for student pedestrians.

Full post as published by LaBovick Injury Law Blog on May 06, 2009 (boomark / email).