Despite accident, no flashing signal planned for Herschel and Pinegrove
If the sound of a Ford F159 truck t-boning a Jeep Cherokee Laredo early on a Saturday morning on Herschel Street wasn’t enough to bring residents running from nearby homes, the additional sound of the Jeep careening off a parked car and flipping upside down was a guaranteed wake-up call.
Accidents and near misses are common at the intersection of Herschel Street and Pinegrove Avenue, according to nearby homeowners, however, a study requested by District 14 Councilman Jim Love indicates just three recorded crashes between September 2010 and August 2015.
One of those three recorded is the Aug. 29 accident that resulted from a driver failing to stop at the intersection while driving at approximately 25 mph, according to the Florida Traffic Crash Report. The driver of the struck vehicle escaped with head and neck injuries, but the 1999 Jeep was totaled. There were no injuries suffered by the driver who ran the stop sign.
Love requested the study to determine if a flashing yellow/red signal, similar to the ones at Dancy and Herschel Streets, and at Ingleside Avenue and Herschel Street, could be installed at Pinegrove.
Nelson Caparas, chief of the city’s traffic division, indicated the installation of a flashing light would require clearing the trees at the intersection and the approaches to provide the required sight lines. The flashers are likely to be more obscured by vegetation than the signs under the canopy, he stated. The flashing yellow/red light will not change existing control at this intersection.
Public Works will install a Stop Ahead warning sign in advance of the intersection to supplement the stop signs and will perform maintenance on the stop signs, trimming back vegetation to clear or improve sight lines.
By Kate A. Hallock
Resident Community News
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