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Letters to the editor
Wider
Stretch doesn't mean fewer fatalities
Regarding the 18-Mile
Stretch, you ask why not "just get on with it?" in your editorial of
Sept. 14.
Because the major
premise is flawed.
Your argument implies
that a new Stretch would be safer than the existing one. That is not
necessarily so. Accidents and fatalities on Alligator Alley increased at
a much greater rate than traffic increased. Fatalities averaged three
per year prior to the 1994 "improvements" and 11 per year afterward,
while traffic increased 4 percent per year between 1991 and 1997.
Peer-reviewed research
published this year in "Accident Analysis and Prevention" shows that an
increase in fatalities on new highways is common. Using data from all 50
states over 14 years, the author concludes: "Results strongly refute the
hypothesis that infrastructure improvements have been effective at
reducing total fatalities and injuries." The author also stated "there
is no question that 'non-concrete' approaches to safety are far more
cost-effective. "
We are fighting for a
safer 18-Mile Stretch, not just a new road.
Despite the years of
delay, the Florida Department of Transportation [FDOT] has failed to do
a comprehensive accident and cost/benefit analysis to determine the root
causes of Stretch accidents and to identify the most cost-effective
solutions. Their "one-size-fits-all" approach assumes -- just as The
Citizen did -- that a new highway is always a safer highway. Many know
intuitively that this is not the case, and now unequivocal research
proves it. A highway can be made safer -- and FDOT has had ample time to
do so -- if solutions are found for specific causes. Is the main cause
excessive speed? Alcohol? Dangerous passing? None of these behaviors
would be improved with an "off the shelf" new highway.
The misleading sign on
the Stretch leaving Florida City tallies annual fatalities all the way
to Key West, not just the Stretch. This year, there have been two
fatalities on the Stretch, and four in the equivalent miles from Key
West north. If this new road brings more traffic to the Keys, then we
could easily have the perverse consequence of increasing and
transferring the accidents and deaths to roads within the Keys. Areawide
traffic safety impacts of this project have not been addressed by FDOT.
I'm disappointed that
The Citizen is in a rush to get a new road -- any road. Don't let
impatience reward FDOT for their foot-dragging. Why is it that there is
never enough time to do something right, but there is always enough time
to fix it?
I don't think The
Citizen wants to be responsible for an increase in accidents and
fatalities just so we can "get on with it."
I know this citizen
doesn't.
John Hammerstrom
Tavernier |
