Speeding is a problem along this part of U.S. 41. Slowing you down is fast becoming a priority
Anyone who has attempted to enter or leave USF Sarasota-Manatee, New College and businesses in the area along U.S. 41 near Sarasota Bradenton International Airport knows there is a problem.
Speeding is an issue on U.S. 41 between University Parkway and Whitfield Avenue.
Even though the posted speed limit varies from 45 mph to 50 mph, about 85 percent of drivers average 64 mph near Somerset Avenue, according to a Florida Department of Transportation report presented Monday to the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization.
During the days speed data was collected, more than 600 vehicles were traveling more than 70 mph near Somerset Avenue.
FDOT believes there is a way to calm the traffic while making the neighborhood safer and more appealing.
Among changes suggested by FDOT on Monday were adding roundabouts, reducing the number of through lanes from six to four and adding landscaped medians and buffered bike lanes.
Roundabouts are proposed for Braden Avenue and the USF Sarasota-Manatee entrance. Other changes proposed include additional turn lanes at University Parkway and closing Ponce de Leon from U.S. 41 to Tallevast Road.
The overall corridor travel time in peak afternoon travel would remain 5.2 minutes as it is now through 2021 if the changes were made, according to the study. In other words, reducing the number of traffic lanes does not mean travel time would suffer, the study said.
But the forecast into 2040 if improvements are not made shows travel slowing to 10.2 minutes. With the proposed changes, travel time would be 8.2 minutes.
The goal would be to improve safety and comfort for all users, improve access to destinations, keep traffic flowing and beautify the corridor, said David Agacinski, bicycle and pedestrian coordinator for FDOT.
Although there is currently no funding for constructing the proposed U.S. 41 improvements — or a timetable for when the work would be done — MPO board members seemed unanimous in their praise for the study.
Betsy Benac, a Manatee County commissioner who sits on the MPO board, called the proposal exciting and said that as it is now, U.S. 41 is a sea of asphalt that beckons to speeders to the peril of pedestrians and others.
“The stars are beginning to align here,” Benac said.
Manatee County commissioners Vanessa Baugh and Misty Servia also sit on the MPO board.
The proposed improvements would help alleviate concerns at USF Sarasota-Manatee, which is contemplating expansion, Baugh said.
Servia said she believes overhauling the corridor could help trigger redevelopment there.
Contacted after the MPO meeting, Karen Holbrook, regional chancellor at USFSM, also had praise for the corridor changes.
“We support a new traffic design for the Tamiami Trail corridor that will improve the overall flow of traffic and enhance the safety of our students, faculty and staff, as well as members of the community who visit our campus. The corridor has great potential for business development and recreational activities which would also be appealing,” Holbrook said.
When asked if they would support reducing a travel lane in each direction along U.S. 41 between the Manatee-Sarasota county line and Tallevast Road, 28 percent of respondents answered yes, and 33 percent said yes if the changes were accompanied by congestion relief at University Parkway and Tallevast that would allow for similar or reduced vehicular travel time through the intersection.
Thirty-nine percent of respondents said they would not support reducing the number of lanes.
FDOT officials said they would work in partnership with the Sarasota/Manatee MPO to prioritize and fund improvements.
Intersection improvements at University Parkway would be treated as an individual project.
The project development and environment study for the corridor, currently scheduled for 2021-2022, would be advanced a year.
This story was originally published March 26, 2019 at 6:00 AM.