Letter to the editor

Posted

A1A through Ponte Vedra should not be expanded to six lanes.

Ponte Vedra Beach is a seaside residential community known for its beaches, local shopping, resorts, golf courses and easy living. The North Florida Transportation Planning Organization publicly released its traffic study and recommendations on April 13, 2017, impacting this community. While some of the recommendations to expand turning lanes and safely enter and exit Route 210 on the bridge over the Intracoastal will enhance traffic flow with minimal impact on the look and feel of our community, the recommendation of expanding A1A to six to eight lanes through Ponte Vedra Beach is an absurd recommendation in their quest to improve peak time traffic congestion.

There are several reasons this recommendation is not in the best interests of Ponte Vedra Beach or the surrounding communities. Studies show that expanding road size does not solve congestion – it creates more. Increasing the number of through lanes causes a significant increase in the accident rate, and the accident rate actually decreases during peak rush hour on roads such as A1A. Lastly, expanding A1A will decrease property values in Ponte Vedra Beach.

Expanding A1A will not solve congestion problems, will increase traffic and accidents and lower property values. This congestion is limited to a few peak hours and it is caused by cut-through traffic according to the traffic study. It does not make sense to build a permanent, expensive, offensive infrastructure as a flawed resolution to a problem caused by cut-through traffic occurring a few hours during the day.

We demand better and more community focused solutions from our tax-supported public officials.

Jane Rollinson

Ponte Vedra Beach