Put multi modal paths on Morse Blvd
 

After reading another article of someone being killed on Morse Blvd shouldn't something be done regarding the lack of multi modal trails in that area. All the rest of Morse Blvd and all of Buena Vista have multi modal trails. There should be an attempt to have the trails built from 466 north to Hacienda Hills Country Club. There are too many accidents or near misses between golf carts and cars. Just my two cents on the fatality that happened today.

Multi-modal paths could be a good idea but explain how a person going either way would cross safely to the other side...think if they needed to cross both lanes of traffic. With the neighborhood's on both sides of Morse to get to, it might not be feasible from a cost factor (millions upon millions). I would think that at a meeting somewhere, the "powers that be" discussed this!

The Developer never invisioned the quantity of vehicular and cart traffic that Morse Blvd would have to handle as The Villages developed over the years. I believe in most cases the Developer has addressed traffic issues in a very responsible manner. They have attempted to make Morse Blvd. (from 466 to Hacienda GC) a safe passage way for cars and carts, but in my opinion it falls short. I would hope the Developer would easily recognize the growing safety issues here and do the necessary improvements regardless of cost. As for myself, I avoid that stretch of road as often as possible.

First let me state I o not have a dog in this fight, I live south of 466a.
However, I recently had the opportunity to travel this section of Morse Blvd, going to and from the hospital. I can see there are many valid concerns. I took a look at Google maps, and it appears that the golf cart lanes could POSSIBLY be moved to the left and right sides of Morse Blvd. This would solve the first problem, getting the golf carts away from the cars. The second one, how the get across Morse Blvd. will probably require the installation of at least 2 possibly as many as 4 traffic lights at suitable locations to allow safe crossing of Morse Blvd. This would also slow down the traffic significantly.

I present the above ideas as a possible basis for discussion with the parties interested in solving the problems in this area. There are several points to keep in mind: This portion of TV was built way before the parts to the south, and was probably more than suitable at the time. There are probably existing right of ways that will either help or hinder this possible solution. I am certain, that this will not be looked on kindly by all of the people that have property adjacent to Morse Blvd.

Please do not shoot the messenger, these are just my humble ideas.

Very difficult problem, and very costly engineering project to solve. Major issues include maintenance of drainage patterns, accommodation of traffic, and much more. Tunnels would be an option to traffic signals, but again, enormous expense. Extensive permitting requirements also. And best case scenario would take years before completion of construction. It's much easier and cheaper to design something like this during concept development than it is to retrofit.

None of this is intended to discourage attempts to deal with the situation. But there are no quick and easy solutions.

What some folks are missing is that Morse Blvd is not the developer's responsibility. It is a County road and all improvements such as the ones done awhile back which included widening of road, re-striping lanes, turn lanes and traffic signals at Rio Grande and San Marino came after much study and the appropriation of funds by Sumter County. I think most will agree that during the peak season there is much more traffic being carried on this road then was ever anticipated by the developer and Sumter County. Unfortunately none of the improvements did anything to remedy the problem with golf carts traveling on Morse having to cross multiple lanes of traffic to make turns or to get to tunnel that runs under CR 466. The problem is somewhat lessened between the peak seasons but still has worsened with population increase and more vehicles and golf carts being driven at higher speeds by folks who are always in a rush. Bottom line if you have a suggestion for fixing the problem, take it to the Sumter County Commissioners. They do listen to voters.

Scary!
 

from the get go Morse scared me. And why is everyone in a hurry? I thought that seniors slowed up in the aging process. People in a hurry to get somewhere and then don't know what to do with themselves..amen

You are one of the few people in The Villages qualified to give a solution for this problem.


Also, not all vehicles are villager residents.

And then you have to solve the problem of someone in a golf cart, making a left turn in front of a automobile........................

As pointed out above, this is a county road, so maybe the villagers living in this area could approach the county to look into the problems.

My previous suggestions did not address water drainage, which will be impacted if the golf cart lanes are moved. The installation of traffic lights was to eliminate the cost of tunnels or bridges, and also would tend to slow the traffic.

There is no doubt this will be a long process, probably very expensive. If I think of any other ideas, I will post these.

Aside from the southbound cart crossing near 466, how is Morse north of 466 different from other roads within TV? Bailey Trail, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. Stillwater Trail east of Morse, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. Odell Circle, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. Canal Street, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. And many others match that description. Morse north of 466, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. All these roads have neighborhood streets entering them. All have mail stations along them. Morse even has traffic lights at the major intersections of San Marino and Rio Grande.

You can argue that there is more traffic on Morse than the others mentioned, but the risks are the same if the cart driver is not paying attention, or adhering to the rules of the road, or assumes right of way that is not his/hers.

Aside from the southbound cart crossing near 466, how is Morse north of 466 different from other roads within TV? Bailey Trail, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. Stillwater Trail east of Morse, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. Odell Circle, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. Canal Street, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. And many others match that description. Morse north of 466, cart path on the street, car speed limit 30. All these roads have neighborhood streets entering them. All have mail stations along them. Morse even has traffic lights at the major intersections of San Marino and Rio Grande.

You can argue that there is more traffic on Morse than the others mentioned, but the risks are the same if the cart driver is not paying attention, or adhering to the rules of the road, or assumes right of way that is not his/hers.

I agree. Why should Morse Blvd be singled out?

The fact that there is much more traffic on Morse is a huge deal. As you say, the risks are the same, but when the are more cars and more golf carts the possibility of something bad happening is increased.

Morse and Buena Vista are the two main north and south roads in The Villages. No other road really compares to them.

By the way, I agree that this was strictly the fault of the poor gentleman that lost his life. We all need to be responsible for ourselves. But the fact that there is a lot more traffic makes an road more dangerous.

Tee times/meetings
 

Active adults have all kinds of time?? Nope! However, I do get your point.

Unfortunately, this problem occurred because of the expansion of TV. This section of Morse was never designed for the amount of traffic that currently uses the road (including cars and golf carts). The problem could be solved but it will be costly. TV has made Sumter County---maybe Sumter County should do something for TV---lots and lots of taxes paid to the county by residents of The Villages.

A lower speed limit on this section of Morse won't solve the entire problem but it might help.