UF partnered with the Florida Department of Transportation to promote pedestrian and traffic safety at an event Wednesday.
Department representatives and University Police Department officers gathered on University Avenue and 13th Street to encourage safe pedestrian and driving behaviors during peak traffic times.
Tracy Hisler-Pace, an FDOT communications manager, said the first day of school rush was a perfect time to remind the UF community about traffic safety.
“What better day to come out here and remind students, faculty and staff and every other road user that you need to pay attention to the traffic?” Hisler-Pace said.
FDOT representatives passed out flyers advertising safety tips and Target Zero, a statewide initiative by the department to reduce traffic-related injuries and deaths to zero.
“I know that sounds like it could never happen, but keeping everybody safe and alive should be something that we all strive for,” Hisler-Pace said. “We want you to have a great year, but we want you to have a safe year.”
Free helmets and bicycle lights were given to attendees to encourage pedestrian safety.
UPD Chief Linda Stump-Kurnick said law enforcement implemented several initiatives to make University Avenue a safer place for pedestrians and drivers, including speed tables, adjusting traffic light timings and reducing the speed limit.
UPD made the changes in 2021 after two UF students and one professor were struck and killed by cars on University Avenue.
Efforts to implement raised crosswalks and improved lighting structures began earlier this year.
“The topography has changed in Gainesville,” Stump-Kurnick said. “This is an effort that's going to have to be for the long game, not the short game.”
Stump-Kurnick urged Gainesville drivers and pedestrians to pay attention in busy areas like University Avenue and 13th Street.
“There's a lot of people crossing and vehicular traffic,” she said. “It can be dangerous for somebody who's not paying attention.”
UF President Ben Sasse also made an appearance at the event.
The university is continuing to focus on traffic safety initiatives, Sasse told attendees.
“We’re grateful for all of our students we have back and these folks who help keep them safe,” he said.
Contact Garrett at gshanley@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @garrettshanley.
Garrett Shanley is a third-year journalism and history major and The Alligator's Fall 2023 university administration reporter. In his free time, Garrett can be found watching Wong Kar-Wai movies and brooding.
