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Clearwater Pedestrian Safety Campaign Begins

Pedestrians | Walking | City Streets

The campaign is funded by a $40,000 grant from the Florida Department of Transportation.

CLEARWATER – Police here have started a six-month campaign designed to improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.

The Clearwater Police Department received a $40,000 grant from the Florida Department of Transportation to fund the efforts of officers working extra-duty assignments to target problem areas of the city where illegal pedestrian activity is most common.

Officers began the education portion of the program Dec. 1. A warning phase follows that, and then an enforcement phase.

“We are hopeful this education and enforcement effort will change some attitudes and behaviors when it comes to pedestrian and bicyclist safety within the city of Clearwater,” said Lt. Michael Walek, who oversees the special operations section, including traffic enforcement. “We have to find a safe way for all of these different parties to coexist on our roads and respect each other.”

Police officers are concentrating their efforts on intersections and areas where there tends to be a high number of violators and related issues.

Some of those include Hercules Avenue and Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard, Belcher Road and Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard, Missouri Avenue and Druid Road, Keene Road and Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard and State Road 580 and Countryside Boulevard.

Officers will be talking with pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers in an attempt to educate them about the law and change some of the dangerous and risky behavior that leads to crashes.

The program will wrap up by the middle of May.

For information about the Clearwater Police Department, go to clearwaterpolice.org.

Clearwater Police | Pedestrians | Bicyclists | Safety Campaign | TB Reporter

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