ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — A St. Johns County resident is speaking out about dangerous driving conditions outside her neighborhood after a man was hit and killed there Wednesday night.
Florida Highway Patrol says the accident happened off State Road 16 and Downs Corner Road. They say an SUV hit the back of a motor scooter, sending it and the 41-year-old rider into a nearby ditch.
FHP says the 47-year-old woman driving the SUV left the scene of the accident, and the man was pronounced dead.
Lori Gillespie, who lives in a neighborhood just up the street from where the accident happened, says she worries for her family’s safety coming in and out of the neighborhood.
“It’s not safe for the children, for the residents, for the people out on the road,” Gillespie said. “We take our lives in our hands every day.”
Gillespie says recent developments have brought hundreds of people to the area. Between the increased traffic and the 60 mph speed limit, she has to direct her 15- and 17-year-old grandchildren on how to visit her safely.
“I won’t let them make a left out of here,” Gillespie said. “I said, ‘Go to the right, go down to the Publix, turn around, and go back home.’”
Former HOA board member of Windward Ranch, Tom Hamilton, says the road’s conditions are something he’s taken up with the district’s county commissioner.
“They did a traffic study, and they found it was warranted to go ahead and put in a [traffic] light,” Hamilton said. “But the state denied it because they need to expand the road in the next few years.”
Southeast Development Partners, the developer responsible for a 524-acre mixed-use development called Grand Oaks, committed to widening a three-mile stretch of SR 16 under a 2018 agreement to address the uptick in traffic generated by the development. However, there’s been an ongoing legal battle between the developer and the county over who’s responsible for the $57 million cost
The Florida Department of Transportation shared the following statement regarding placing a traffic light near the scene of the accident:
Regarding the recent tragedy, our hearts break whenever there is a death or serious injury on the roadway. To that end, reviewing crash reports is critical to understanding crash causes and prevention. Law enforcement may be able to assist you with any crash reports associated with this crash.
As is standard operating procedure, FDOT reviews all reported crashes on state roadways and interstates – a special emphasis is placed on fatalities and crashes with injuries. If there are improvements that can be made to enhance the safety of the facilities, FDOT will work to implement them.
A widening project is planned for State Road 16; however, the project is intended to address future capacity needs and is not being presented as a safety countermeasure for this crash.
Until the law enforcement investigation is complete and the circumstances of the crash are better understood, it would be inappropriate to speculate about the cause of the crash or identify specific safety measures to prevent similar incidents.
Hamilton was told by county officials that the road’s widening would be completed within the next three years.
“We’re supposed to just wait and hope that, you know, we’re safe in those years getting onto a fast road with all the traffic,” Hamilton said.
Gillespie says developers need to consider infrastructure and people’s safety.
“If I had known that before I bought this house, I would have never bought this house,” Gillespie said. “I just wouldn’t have, because it’s not safe.”
Action News Jax reached out to Southeast Development Partners and the district’s new county commissioner, Martin Pyszczymuka, for comment. We are waiting on a response.
We also reached out to the St. Johns Office of Public Affairs, which referred us to FDOT.
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