Polk County Launches 'Best Foot Forward' Program to Eliminate Pedestrian Deaths

Polk County's Pedestrian Safety Initiative

• ⚠️ Polk County ranks among the top 25 deadliest counties in the state for pedestrians, with 26 pedestrian and cyclist deaths last year.
• 🎯 The county is launching a new program, Best Foot Forward, aiming to reduce this number to zero fatalities.

Best Foot Forward Program Details

• 💡 The program, operated by Bikewalk Central Florida, focuses on educating drivers to yield to pedestrians at crosswalks.
• 🚓 It collaborates with law enforcement to issue warnings or citations and conducts educational sign-waving events.
• 📊 Data from Orlando and Orange County shows a significant improvement in driver yield rates, increasing from 17% to nearly 50% since the program's inception in 2012.
• 📉 Dyer notes a corresponding decrease in deaths and serious injuries in areas where the program has been implemented.

Implementation and Solutions

• 📍 The program has begun studying crosswalks in Lakeland, Winterhaven, and BTO, near schools and parks.
• 🛠️ Each crosswalk is evaluated for at least a year, with recommendations for low-cost solutions such as better striping, signage, and delineators.
• ✅ These implemented solutions are tracked to demonstrate their positive effect on pedestrian safety.