Alert Today, Alive Tomorrow

In November, the Key West Police Department, with the help of a grant from the Florida Department of Transportation, rolled out a program aimed at improving the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians in particularly accident prone areas of the island.

The “Alert Today, Alive Tomorrow” FDOT campaign is providing grant funding so that the Key West Police can step up enforcement in targeted areas to stop unsafe behavior or all road users: motorists, pedestrians and cyclists.

The first phase of the program was to warn people for unsafe behavior in several areas that have shown the highest number of injuries. Now, the second phase is underway, and police will be issuing citations to violators in these areas.

Officers are monitoring the following areas:

  • The 2700 block of North Roosevelt Blvd.
  • The Triangle
  • The intersection of Truman Avenue and Eisenhower Drive
  • The 400 block of Duval Street
  • The intersection of Eaton and White streets

Recent studies have shown that Key West, when compared to cities of equal size, rank #1 for bicycle injuries and #4 for incidents involving pedestrians.

This program is an effort to educate motorists as well as cyclist and pedestrians. Since the goal is to change behaviors, the officers began with warnings in November. Anyone driving a vehicle needs to be aware of cyclists and respect their right to share the road. At the same time, cyclists need to obey the rules of the road. The goal of the grant is shows real reductions in injuries and fatalities by changing behaviors.

That means that bikes, when travelling in the road, must go with the flow of traffic, stop at all lights and stop signs, and use lights at night. It’s also illegal for a bicyclist to pass a car on the right, especially through an intersection. Bicycles may ride on sidewalks, however they must yield to pedestrians and give an audible signal when passing someone on foot. Bikes and motorists must yield to pedestrians.

The Key West Police Department will be targeting these particular areas, as part of the grant, through May of 2017.

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