[NotGolfer]

There was an article in today's Sun (Local section) re: Colony Blvd and how T.V. are looking at options for safety. Today I went by golf-cart down there and Village Watch had someone directing traffic. Good thing too, as it was quite dense (both vehicles and carts)! Just the same, might avoid that area as much as possible---especially after the 1st of the year when renters are here. High Season, don't you know?

[LuckySevens]

I am putting this suggestion in the 2014 survey..........
Please...please....At least put a 4 way stop where carts enter the road by the Colony Rec Center...so dangerous and difficult for carts to get on the road. THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION AND THE CARTS BACK UP IN THE DOZENS. Better yet, I suggest you re-route the golf cart path. Instead of having the carts come out to the street, you could get rid of some of the trees alongside the road by the golf course and turn that into a golf cart path�then angle it back toward the buildings, and make that entrance into the area where Beef O�Brady�s, etc. a GOLF CART ONLY ENTRANCE AND EXIT (No cars allowed to exit there) Carts wouldn�t even have to compete with cars then.
I hope this suggestion makes sense to everyone.

[e-flyer]

A stop sign makes more sense to me than a traffic light. You idea of a separate path all the way to the strip mall makes sense to me, as long as there is a means to get to the Citizens Bank or Walgreens, lots of folks use their carts for those businesses also.

[patfla06]

Originally Posted by LuckySevens

I am putting this suggestion in the 2014 survey..........
Please...please....At least put a 4 way stop where carts enter the road by the Colony Rec Center...so dangerous and difficult for carts to get on the road. THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION AND THE CARTS BACK UP IN THE DOZENS. Better yet, I suggest you re-route the golf cart path. Instead of having the carts come out to the street, you could get rid of some of the trees alongside the road by the golf course and turn that into a golf cart path�then angle it back toward the buildings, and make that entrance into the area where Beef O�Brady�s, etc. a GOLF CART ONLY ENTRANCE AND EXIT (No cars allowed to exit there) Carts wouldn�t even have to compete with cars then.
I hope this suggestion makes sense to everyone.

I totally agree! Your suggestions make a lot of sense to me.
They also should put a 4-way stop down past the Walgreen's.

[justjim]

A tunnel under colony Blvd and extension to he east of the cart path would solve the safety issues, however, this solution would also be the most expensive.

There are other ways to help including stop signs or a traffic signal. You could allow car traffic only to the recreation building---rerouting all other traffic onto 466A. This would solve the carts crossing colony blvd competing against the cars wanting to hurry to Publix. I'm sure the bank and Walgreens wouldn't approve of this solution.

One thing sure---it's a very bad accident or accidents waiting to happen.

[NJblue]

According to the paper, reconfiguring the cart paths was one of the options (along with a tunnel/overpass and a stop light). It was also the most inexpensive of the options. The tunnel would cost a million dollars. This is one area where the normally exellent planning process of TV failed.

Just think how lovely that intersection will be once they complete the eastern portion of the Villages down Morse Ave and also the new 2,000 homes in Fruitland Park.

[pbeinetti]

Below is an email I sent to Janet Tutt today -- my 2 cents!

Hello Janet:

I read David Corder's article in the Daily Sun with interest this morning. My wife and I use the intersection frequently, both in our cart and vehicle. As noted by you in the article, it is VERY dangerous.

I have a concern that if The Villages of Fruitland Park is built, as I suspect it will be, the traffic at the intersection, and around Colony Plaza in general, will increase substantially. Unless another shopping plaza is built to accommodate residents from the Fruitland Park Village, and other villages SE of 466A, they will use Colony Plaza -- either by cart, or vehicle. While a traffic signal at the intersection might be a short term answer, I believe in the longer run either a bridge or tunnel will be required. Perhaps it would be better not to spend the money on a traffic signal now, but rather plan on a tunnel or bridge in the next year or two. In addition, regardless of the solution picked for the intersection, there needs to be some way to separate carts and vehicles traveling from the Colony Cottage area, to Colony Plaza. At the moment, cars and carts are intermingled -- it is very dangerous. When the snowbirds arrive it is like a demolition derby. Either the street needs to be widened, and cart lanes provided, or a separate path built for carts.

I realize that the design of this intersection, and Colony Blvd. itself, was probably a design error from the beginning. My hope is that it can be rectified by good design now, acknowledging that there will likely be an increase in cart and vehicle traffic from Village areas yet to be built.

Thanks for your help in getting this problem resolved.

[golf2140]

Quick fix. Put two stop signs up. That will backp cars on Colony. They will get the message to go to the traffic light at 466A to go shopping. Cost $200.00 I love easy fixes.

[cquick]

Originally Posted by LuckySevens

I am putting this suggestion in the 2014 survey..........
Please...please....At least put a 4 way stop where carts enter the road by the Colony Rec Center...so dangerous and difficult for carts to get on the road. THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION AND THE CARTS BACK UP IN THE DOZENS. Better yet, I suggest you re-route the golf cart path. Instead of having the carts come out to the street, you could get rid of some of the trees alongside the road by the golf course and turn that into a golf cart path�then angle it back toward the buildings, and make that entrance into the area where Beef O�Brady�s, etc. a GOLF CART ONLY ENTRANCE AND EXIT (No cars allowed to exit there) Carts wouldn�t even have to compete with cars then.
I hope this suggestion makes sense to everyone.

I agree that the intersection there was very poorly designed. I am so surprised since TV has had lots of experience in traffic control. Somebody really dropped the ball there!

[kittygilchrist]

I learned to avoid turning into colony from 466a near Walgreens..otherwise at the stop sign, the oncoming mix of carts and cars from three directions is impossible to move past the stop safely and without a long wait. I think it needs a four way, and certainly something should be done to give traffic coming in off 466a clearance from 466a, onto which traffic is likely to back up in season.

[AriaGrandparents2013]

It's been my experience that in evaluating corrective options there is always a tendency to advance a less expensive option/alternatives because it's perceived that the ultimate solution is too expensive. Then as years go on and traffic increases, both automobile and golf cart, which with future southerly expansion of The Villages it's certain that traffic will increase significantly........the Planners & Engineers realize that the ultimate corrective safest solution is to physically separate the two modes of traffic. They then realize several years in the future that this solution now with inflation is two to three times the construction cost of their original estimate.

So now is the time to fast track a design and building of a tunnel system in order to save yourself millions of dollars when you realize that with traffic increases that a signal system was not the solution.

[PaPaLarry]

There's some great ideas posted here, and just glad The Villages are looking into this situation, and planning to rectify the situation. I'm sure solutions are being looked at, and the right decision will be made. That's what I like about The Villages, they learn from mistakes, and fix it better in the next area of construction. Keep bringing in ideas, everyone, so they can make a sensible decision!!

[Bogie Shooter]

Looks like the research has been done and a decision has been made:
**************

A traffic signal to help alleviate congestion at the golf cart that crosses Colony Boulevard near Colony Cottage Recreation Center could be installed soon.

The Project Wide Advisory Committee (PWAC) unanimously voted Monday to get the ball rolling on the matter.

Traffic congestion at the point where the golf cart traffic meets automobile traffic has been an unwelcome byproduct of the popular recreation center and shopping plaza.

[travelguy]

while i love the idea of more tunnels it is virtually impossible to retrofit the intersections where additional tunnels would be helpful. case in point is buena vista and466A. there is no tunnel adjacent to that intersection; one must wind thru the turtle mound gold area and cross by sumter place, and then travel down 466A and eventually meet up with buena vista again. and if you want to get to the library and pinellas plaza, well there is no golf cart path along 466A, and so one must ride along pinellas...
this is quite a poor and awkward design. and there is no other tunnel along 466A until you get past morse. a tunnel near canal would be appropriate. there are many design flaws that were created in the original construction plans...and unfortunately crossing 466A to the new sections did not remedy the situation. the same logic has prevailed, and unfortunately we will have to live with it. these infrastructural inadequacies will be too costly to change, especially when each and every one of us would have to utimately bear that cost.

[pbeinetti]

Response from Janet Tutt, below.

Good Morning,

Thank you for contacting me regarding the article and apologize for the delay in responding.

The traffic engineering firm has reviewed alternatives and did, n fact, consider the tunnel. There are cost constraints to the tunnel option and the PWAC felt the traffic signal was the best alternative at this time.

Community Watch spent part of a day at the site this week and we are working on staffing the location beginning sometime next week as soon as we can adjust schedules and develop our safety/operations plan.

The traffic engineers continue to review this site and will be providing a scope of work and further actions will take place at the November meeting.

Please let me know if you need anything further at this time and, again, thank you for contacting me.

Janet