Study Suggests Safety Improvements near Site of Fatal Bicycle Accident on Landstar Boulevard

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on March 28, 2014

A recent fatal bicycle accident that claimed the life of a 6-year-old boy riding his bike to school has prompted Orange County officials to take steps to make the area safer for kids walking and biking to school. The accident that spurred officials to take action involved a collision between the bicyclist and a tractor-trailer near on Landstar Boulevard near northbound State Road 417. The boy was on his way to Meadow Woods Elementary School and was attempting to cross Landstar Blvd. when he was struck and killed by the semi.

The driver of the truck told police that he didn’t see the boy trying to cross the street, which inspired officials to explore ways to prevent similar accidents from injuring and killing children near Orange County schools. After conducting a study of the area near Meadow Woods Elementary, officials recommended that the area where the accident occurred should be a designated school crossing zone due to the number of children who walk and bike to Meadow Woods and a nearby middle school. If the designation is allowed, some signs would be replaced and others added to warn drivers to slow down and watch for children.

In a statement, school safety coordinator Kevin Miller said, "The school crossing signs would have an advance sign about 300-400 feet in advance and that would give enough motorists advance notice that there would be a crossing ahead."

He also mentioned that if the signs had been in place, the truck driver would known that he was approaching a crosswalk and to be watchful for kids in the area. Officials also said that new crosswalk buttons and an additional traffic signal would be installed so that drivers are forced to stop instead of being allowed to yield at the intersection where the boy was killed.

"The area has changed and we need to keep up with the changes," said Miller.

Orlando personal injury lawyers fully endorse any safety measures that make area roadways safer for bicyclists, pedestrians and other non-motorized traffic, especially near schools. Too many streets and highways in central Florida were designed for the convenience of drivers, with pedestrian and bicycle safety given little or no consideration. While many safety measures have been implemented to correct this in recent years, our area’s grim reputation for pedestrian and bicycle accidents indicates that there is plenty of room for improvement.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.