ST. JOHNS, Fla. — People who live in Fruit Cove Estates are urging county leaders to slow down a proposed Daily’s gas station and car wash planned along San Jose Boulevard near State Road 13, citing traffic safety concerns along an already congested stretch of road.
For Holly Zetts, the issue hits close to home. She stands daily at a bus stop with her two young daughters, as cars speed past during the morning and afternoon rush.
“You have to be at the bus stop for the kindergartner,” Zetts said. “There are so many cars here.”
Zetts said congestion already makes it difficult to get in and out of the neighborhood, even before any new development is added.
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“It’s nearly impossible to get out sometimes during the day,” she said.
St. Johns County Commissioner Christian Whitehurst said he has received several emails from residents worried about how the project could affect traffic and children waiting for school buses.
“They don’t want people speeding in and out of this gas station while children are waiting for the bus,” Whitehurst said.
According to the St. Johns County transportation analysis spreadsheet, State Road 13 near the Duval County line carries about 47,000 vehicles per day and is operating at a deficient level of service.
Whitehurst acknowledged the deficiency.
“It is deficient, but part of the deficiency, part of what’s calculated into that are parcels like that that have already been rezoned but haven’t yet been constructed,” he said.
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Zetts said traffic issues at the intersection are already a problem, pointing to what she described as frequent crashes and dangerous turns.
“Since I’ve been here, there have been multiple accidents at this very intersection,” she said. “There’s no way to turn left. A lot of people U-turn, and that’s not going to get better with more traffic coming in and out of this neighborhood.”
Neighbors worry an additional car wash and gas station would only add to backups, spilling into surrounding neighborhoods.
Action News Jax reached out to Daily’s multiple times for comment and are still waiting to hear back.
The project remains in the application phase and must go through a required community meeting before it can advance to the county’s planning and zoning agency.
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