Scenic 30A and 395 Intersection in Seagrove Beach

I don't think it does. My feeling is that probably 90% of the people who use the bikepath are not acquainted with, nor comfortable with, merging into vehicular traffic. And they will hardly be prepared to use the rules of the road that vehicular traffic follows. A great number of these holiday bicyclers are children, who have never heard of the rules of the road.

Lake View Too, I agree with you about the unique natural environment of Seagrove. I hate when it is diminished. Since most of it is private property, I think the best we can do is continue to put pressure on the county to enforce preservation requirements and density limitations, and encourage property owners to conserve and to restore whenever possible. Education could help here.
But the thing about the Pt Washington State Forest is that it is not just like a million miles of swampy southern forest. It's part of only 3% of the original long leaf pine forests still remaining, and forestry is doing all they can to restore it. Check this out:
http://www.nature.org/ourinitiative...a/unitedstates/florida/howwework/longleaf.xml

That was educational to me. Thanks. I've been very partial to scrub oaks, all my life, and need to branch out (get it?;-)) and appreciate the pines, as well.

I am having a hard time dismissing this issue... it just occurred to me this morning that a roundabout of this size will completely devastate the grove of trees that inspired the naming of Seagrove... pause for a minute and let it sink in that we keep destroying the things that have made our community unique and beautiful... and, for what? to make it more comfortable for tourists to come down here?(Hint: if they can't wait for an extra ten minutes in traffic, then they can just go back to where they came from.)There just has to be a more moderate way to solve this problem, and other problems that face us because of unbridled growth. A middle beach road should have been planned many years ago, and I still think it needs to be done, rather than another devastating blow to the heart of Seagrove.

True. The groves have disappeared drastically since we built 10 years ago. So many people clear out the groves of live oaks and bring in palm trees that aren't native to the area.

Much of the year you could bowl on 30A due to so little traffic. I'm with Zebraspot -- can't the county give shuttles a try in the high season before the beautiful grove at the 30A/395 intersection is bulldozed?

I think a roundabout could improve things if it's designed right, especially if they flip the bike path east approach to skirt the south side of the roundabout.

What surprises me is that with something that will effect Seagrove as much as this is there wasn't more public discussion leading up to the decision. Unless I missed something, it sounds like there was one workshop back in 2008 where doing something (maybe traffic lights, maybe a roundabout) was discussed in general terms, and then there was this BCC meeting at the end of August where a roundabout was approved. Were there other meetings in between there?

Of course, this could happen too.

[video=youtube_share;Bj_1KcGLwFQ]http://youtu.be/Bj_1KcGLwFQ[/video]

I certainly feel blind-sided, also. I can't emphasize enough what a drastic thing this will be.

That was educational to me. Thanks. I've been very partial to scrub oaks, all my life, and need to branch out (get it?;-)) and appreciate the pines, as well.

This conversation made me decide to change my avatar. Anyway, looks like Kurt managed to run off most of the trolls.

This whole thing makes me sick to my stomach. How many of you voicing in on this round about actually live here full time? The problem with Seagrove is the problem with all of 30a. Every tourist wants a pieceof the life here, and build and build and build. The TDC works hard,to bring as many tourists as possible year round. What did all you tourists and "part,time" home owners think was going to happen to a quaint beautiful tiny community that happens to be by then Gulf? Well did you think it could stay the same? Well guess again. 30a with its round abouts to handle all your big SUV'S one after the other, your packs of bicycles, will choke to death the beautiful little town that I have called home all my life. Do you wonder why people who live here and drive 30a every single day detest the throngs of you that infiltrate our lives in search of your perfect beach? You only have yourselves to blame for the destruction of Old Seagrove. So good luck on your Roundabout, you deserve it!

Well said hippiechick. It's too bad the developers and their toadies at the BCC and TDC don't care what they do as long as they make theirs.

Could not agree more with the two above posts.

Since it sounds like a done deal, can we have a naming contest? I'm throwing out the idea of the Ed Walborsky Liability Loop. What a dream for personal injury lawyers this wheel of paraplegia is going to be.

I believe most posters on this thread are full time residents. But a few are part timers. Doesn't matter. All want the best for the place we love. I enjoy reading constructive discussions. They do matter. And make a difference.

I believe most posters on this thread are full time residents. But a few are part timers. Doesn't matter. All want the best for the place we love. I enjoy reading constructive discussions. They do matter. And make a difference.

Well stated Teresa!

I have seen some good circles. They have to be big enough so that people can easily keep moving without fear of pulling out while still moving.

The county is considering buying the lots on the northeast corner of 30A and 393 for added Ed Walline access parking. They should go ahead and add a circle there if they get the lot.

hahahha

Since it sounds like a done deal, can we have a naming contest? I'm throwing out the idea of the Ed Walborsky Liability Loop. What a dream for personal injury lawyers this wheel of paraplegia is going to be.

A lot of drivers at this intersection have been

So I think we should call it the Looped Loop.

If people are having trouble determining who has the right-of-way at the current intersection, can you imagine how confusing it will be for people who have never used a roundabout? We'll just need some big blue signs that say, "Yield to vehicles already in the roundabout." JK about the "big blue." Roundabouts are pretty confusing if you're not accustomed to them.

As far as the bike path goes, why not build a tunnel for it under the intersection like at Sandestin? I'm not serious. We need shuttles in the high season and forget spending the money for construction that is only necessary then.

After looking at the spot again I am thinking just not enough room for a proper circle. Like I said I've seen some that work very well but they are large, enough room for 4 or 5 cars in just one quarter of the circle. That keep things moving smoothly and prevents confusion. Gives plenty of room for people to yield without having to come to a complete stop. In addition there needs to be plenty of room to move the bike path either to the south or well away from the circle.
Seems like the aree is too small and that 18 wheelers won't be able to make it on a small circle.

As reported on WZEP AM 1460:

As the Walton Commissioner meeting continued, Commissioner Cindy Meadows says a proposed roundabout for 395 and 30-A would take away parking spaces and reroute the bike path. She said a traffic signal would be a better option and cheaper than the round-about.

Meadows said a traffic light could be programmed different for seasonal loads. She told the other commissioners she lives there and has watched the traffic. Meadows said she feels the roundabout will fail and they will have egg on their faces. She also said there is opposition from residents.

Meadows also said the discussion has been ongoing and has not advanced and that there is still a right of way agreement needed. She also said the parking is needed. One question is whether turn lanes would be needed and if they would take away from the parking and bike path. After a discussion, the commissioners agreed to a public hearing on March 12th to take input and decide which way to go. If the funded round-about capital project is deleted it will have to be through a formal process.

Sounds like common sense is winning. Scrap that roundabout idea and let's get to a real solution for the traffic problem on 30A- a new road connecting 30A and 98.

I agree a roundabout is a bad idea given the restrictions on space available for a suitably large one to handle the volume of traffic - I've used many roundabouts on my way to the Jersey shore and work well for those who know how to use it-not something I would trust our tourists to have. Alas, I don't think a traffic light is a good idea either for the following reason - not much traffic on 30a heading east trying to turn north on 395 will be able to cross against the west bound traffic causing massive back-ups on 30a while South bound on 395 will be able to move smoothly east or west. Adding a left turn arrow for those folks wanting to go north will extend the time spent at the light and it would only take the first car wanting to continue east to close the arrow thing down. A long left turn lane would be needed - could the land be made available? IMO there is not a VIABLE OPTION FOR THIS INTERSECTION and should be left as a 3-way stop.
More North/South roads to 98 would be the answer but I think this was approached with state by St. Joe already to go through state forest land and was rejected. The environmentalists would organize against this.
Sorry to be so negative but in the name of doing something/anything the politicians will push this with the result that the law of unintended consequences will emerge (something gov't is exceptionaly good at producing).

I agree a roundabout is a bad idea given the restrictions on space available for a suitably large one to handle the volume of traffic - I've used many roundabouts on my way to the Jersey shore and work well for those who know how to use it-not something I would trust our tourists to have. Alas, I don't think a traffic light is a good idea either for the following reason - not much traffic on 30a heading east trying to turn north on 395 will be able to cross against the west bound traffic causing massive back-ups on 30a while South bound on 395 will be able to move smoothly east or west. Adding a left turn arrow for those folks wanting to go north will extend the time spent at the light and it would only take the first car wanting to continue east to close the arrow thing down. A long left turn lane would be needed - could the land be made available? IMO there is not a VIABLE OPTION FOR THIS INTERSECTION and should be left as a 3-way stop.
More North/South roads to 98 would be the answer but I think this was approached with state by St. Joe already to go through state forest land and was rejected. The environmentalists would organize against this.
Sorry to be so negative but in the name of doing something/anything the politicians will push this with the result that the law of unintended consequences will emerge (something gov't is exceptionaly good at producing).

Agree with your thoughts. I can't think of anything that will be constructed or a machine that will be set up at that intersection that will smoothly solve the problem. Short of alternate routesbeing constructed to augment those that already exist, that intersection is just going to be a bugger during tourist season.

If I could wave a magic wand I would propose that a human being be deployed to manage traffic there between 5:00 and 7:00 every evening between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Tsutcli is correct, the real issue there is the gridlock of westbound cars. I say put a deputy or trained TDC staff member out there to wave the eastern and westbound traffic through at that time, hold the bike path users at the intersection, then wave them through after the southbound 395 cars turn east or west. That way, cars flow and nobody gets run over crossing on foot or bike. The only fly in the ointment I see here is the eastbound cars that want to turn north on 395. This might sound hardcore to accept, but maybe there should be a prohibition of northbound turning from eastbound 30-A to 395 between the peak flow hours I describe above.

I can't think of a much cheaper or practical solution. And if the scheme turned out to be a disaster, the cost of 'fixing it' would be zero dollars.

Very good logic in all the above posts. I think leaving the intersection as is, with no timed traffic light, will work, along with a somewhat "on call" trained traffic cop to lend some logical assistance, at the peak hours. I can't imagine waiting for a traffic light to turn, when there's nobody else there!​ That would bug me to death.

So what happened to the money the BCC approved last year for doing the roundabout design? Was the project canceled? It sounded like a done deal at the time.

I agree that something as simple as a person directing traffic during certain peak hours would help a ton... Saturday mornings before noon in the high season is a rough time when everybody checks out of their rentals and hits the road at the same time. Coin tosses and other fund raisers should be prohibited during that time at that intersection also.

So what happened to the money the BCC approved last year for doing the roundabout design? Was the project canceled? It sounded like a done deal at the time.

It was approved and added to the capital projects list. That is why a public hearing is necessary to look at whether or not to scratch it and go with the traffic light plan as the commissioner has suggested. The commissioners would have to vote to remove it from the capital projects list. Last night it was stated that the county had received an invoice for approximately 50 percent of billing from the engineering consultant on the roundabout project. The amount of that contract, which included engineering and inspection services, was $78,000.