Police Chief David Butler says it’s just a matter of time before confusion leads to catastrophe at Indian Harbour Beach’s trickiest intersection: the spot where Banana River Drive and Pinetree Drive join at Osceola Drive.
Complaints from motorists to Butler about confusing signage and other problems at the three-way intersection prompted city officials to ask county traffic engineers for a solution.
Now, the City Council is considering five alternatives to make the intersection less dangerous – some cheap, some costly. Details of the plans will be publicized in the city newsletter and presented at a community meeting in May.
Indian Harbour Beach City Manager Mark Ryan said there is high traffic flow at the road junction, with cars streaming in from busy South Patrick Drive along Banana River Drive and from A1A on Pinetree.
“Ocean Breeze elementary is nearby and there are a lot of school children who go through this intersection,” he added. “There are concerns about the signage. We can fix that. That’s an easy fix. But whether we do a total reconfiguration of the intersection is something we want to get input on from the community.”
“I’ve been here three years and I still get real antsy when I get to that intersection. The way it is now, it definitely takes some patience by the motorists,’’ he said.
Added Mayor David Panicola: “I don’t know what the solution is, but I do know there is a problem. I know the rules and I still almost get sideswiped or T-boned. I find myself not abiding by the rules and letting everybody go so I don’t get hit.”
The council agreed the one option no longer on the table is doing nothing.
The next edition of the city newsletter, Harbour Highlights, will feature a front page article showing possible fixes for the intersection and will include a date for a community meeting, Ryan said.
“We’ll blow up photos of the options, let people come look at them and maybe bring out the traffic engineer and answer any questions that come up.”
“It has been a problem for so long. I can’t imagine that throughout the United States we’re the only city that has two streets coming into one street coming to a stop sign,’’ said City Councilmember Gene Newberry. “There’s probably some research to see who does it better than we do. There’s never been any accidents of any consequence there but it’s like closing the gate once the horse gets out. I think we’re doing the right thing in looking at this.”
“Chief Butler gets a lot of communication on this and that’s what implemented the studies,” Ryan said. “We asked Brevard County for help because they have a traffic engineer on staff. They did a great job [of coming up with options to make the intersection less confusing and dangerous.”
