Project Status: Implementation Complete
In 2021, Street Plans was engaged by the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization to lead the first two phases of its BTactical Tactical Urbanism program within its Complete Streets division.
The first project selected was in Deerfield Beach, CA for a corridor included in the city’s high injury network. Within the pilot project segment, a .6-mile stretch of NE 3rd Avenue adjacent to Broward Health North hospital and two schools, there had been three traffic crash fatalities in the last five years, due to excessive speeding and unsafe driving. Within the last ten years, the roadway had been widened from two to four lanes, and the city wanted to use the pilot project in part to test a 4-3 lane reduction.
Street Plans kicked off the project with a Walk & Talk workshop to survey the project extents with the community, and start to brainstorm traffic calming and other solutions that could be evaluated through the pilot project. Over the course of the public engagement, Street Plans and the project team refined the final pilot project design to reflect the feedback of stakeholders and residents within the Tedder neighborhood, and the desires of the city.
From December 7-11, 2021, Street Plans, the BMPO, the City of Deerfield Beach, and over 70 volunteers executed a lane reduction by restriping the travel lanes and creating a painted bike lane buffer; added three new crosswalks and eight total art crosswalks; and added vertical protection to the existing bike lanes.
Within the first four months of evaluation, bicycle and pedestrian activity substantially increased. Additional metrics of success are currently being measured.
