Quote:
Originally Posted by graciegirl
Steve? How many folks of the roughly 2000 in Stonecrest have golf carts?
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Probably pretty much all of them but only maybe 10% at the most even have an interest in using the gate and their Golf Cart. You have to remember that gate was wide open for years. Has there been a marked decrease in traffic through the gate since the closure? From what I can see the stream of traffic looks about the same and without any actual data collection its all a guess as to the traffic level. But visually it looks about the same. There are some that would use the gate to go to the square or over to the Hospital. But quite frankly I've made that trip and its far more pleasant in an auto.
The bridge is another factor. The bridge which was designed when a Golf Cart was a Golf Cart has now become dangerous. Its is not adequate for the traffic that now passes over it. There are too many of the carts now that are wider, heavier, and faster. Sooner or later there is going to be a fatality at the bridge. The slope is too steep and people travel too fast. Add in a few drinks and the potential for a disaster increases. If I were you guys I would be pushing for a new tunnel under 441/27. Far safer.
The paradise gate programming should be changed so when you leave TV it opens automatically. I think the difference in the way it works is causing a collision problem. People drive up to the gate thinking it will open automatically on the way out, before they realize it they have just run into it. Had one here in Stonecrest that did not work as the others and it caused the same problem. People expect things to work a certain way when 99% of everything else works in a certain fashion. Your also going to get tailgaters trying to sneak through behind someone. So the gate needs to be designed so if anything is on the loop sensor it will not close. The gates to Walmart were always being broken until they did the loop sensing correctly. This would be my professional opinion after designing systems that interfaced with the human for over 40 years.
From my perspective I have access to several restaurants, a department store, Lowes, and Walmart. Whether I can get through the Paradise Gate does not mean much to me. The only reason I need to get to the Hospital Facilities on the West side of 441/27 is to see the FAA Flight Surgeon every two years to take my FAA Flight Physical. I park across the street and walk over to the Sharon Morse Building. Its good exercise.
Always nice to hear from you.