Short Term Safety Improvements To Skinner Blvd/Pinellas Trail Crossing In Dunedin Proposed

From the City of Dunedin:

December 14, 2021

Dunedin, FL – Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District 7 Secretary David Gwynn, P.E., presented recommendations to the City of Dunedin Commission for a short-term plan addressing safety concerns at the intersection of Skinner Boulevard (580) and the Pinellas Trail at the December 14 work session.

Secretary Gwynn cited an increase in vehicle collisions with bicyclists and pedestrians at the Pinellas Trail/Skinner Boulevard Crossing during the past couple years. There have been seven incidents in 2020 and five to date in 2021, including a recent pedestrian fatality in November.

The short-term solution proposed by FDOT includes installation of a midblock pedestrian signal at the intersection of Skinner Boulevard and the Pinellas Trail.

“There has been a lot of work looking at this crossing,” said Secretary Gwynn. “We have a Complete Streets solution which includes two roundabouts and traffic calming elements as the long-term recommendation which will take two-three years to complete.”

Secretary Gwynn said after thorough study FDOT believes the best solution is the installation of a temporary traffic signal which requires cyclists to stop. Drivers will face a red traffic signal while Trail users will activate the signal with a push-button. “One of the challenges we will see is that cyclists will have to wait for the walk signal to come up – which is part of the green, red, yellow sequence,” added Gwynn.

Secretary Gwynn said they are also planning on putting warning devices for pedestrians and bicyclists on the Trail and will continue public safety education and outreach efforts with Pinellas County, Forward Pinellas and City of Dunedin.

Construction will be completed by Pinellas County in the next three to four months.

View the Presentation here.

Commission Adopts Pinellas Safe Streets Plan

The Dunedin City Commission also adopted the Safe Streets Pinellas Action Plan committing to a goal of zero deaths and serious injuries in Pinellas County by 2045.

“This Action Plan is an important step to change how we approach safety and planning in our city” says City of Dunedin Mayor Julie Ward Bujalski. “No one should be killed on our roadways. No loss of life is acceptable regardless of how people travel. Now is the time for each of us to do our part to guarantee that everyone can travel safely.

Dunedin is working with Forward Pinellas to develop a safety strategy through collision assessment, identifying a high injury network where crashes occur repeatedly, and deploying countermeasures to make the roadways safer.

The City Commission is committed to:

• Adopt a goal of zero deaths on our roadways by 2045
• Support the implementation of Safe Streets Pinellas
• Incorporate Safe Streets into its plans and policies
• Participate in the Safe Streets Pinellas Working Group to coordinate safety improvements

The Forward Pinellas Board adopted the Safe Streets Action Plan in March 2021 and is actively seeking support from other agencies on committing to zero deaths and serious injuries by 2045 and supporting the Safe Streets Pinellas Action Plan, a Vision Zero effort. Forward Pinellas will also be forming the Safe Streets Pinellas Working Group later this year to provide guidance from a range of community partners.

For more information about Safe Streets Pinellas, visit forwardpinellas.org/safestreets

This press release was produced by the City of Dunedin. The views expressed here are the author’s own.