Laurel Park targets cut-through traffic

Alice Sundstrom understands the frustration of drivers who are forced to use an alternate route while a roundabout is built at Orange Avenue and Ringling Boulevard. She just hopes they won’t take it out on her neighborhood.

Sundstrom, president of the Laurel Park Neighborhood Association, is one of several residents discussing the effects of the roundabout construction with city officials. The city closed the Orange-Ringling intersection in November, and the project is expected to continue into May.

As drivers seek alternate routes, residents say the project is causing problems for Laurel Park. For example: Sundstrom thinks motorists traveling south are eager to make up lost time after turning around at the closed intersection and waiting at a stoplight at Ringling and Osprey Avenue.

“That’s when they get into the neighborhood,” Sundstrom said. “They’re in a hurry to get going, and they’re not really doing a very good job of stopping for pedestrians.”

In addition to not stopping at crosswalks, Sundstrom said there’s been an increase in speeding. Residents say they are worried about safety, particularly around the park itself on Laurel Street because of the presence of children.

They’ve worked with the city and the Sarasota Police Department to adjust signs and detours in an effort to mitigate the issues.

“There is no one perfect solution, but hopefully if we keep working with the city, we’ll come up with a number of solutions that could help,” Sundstrom said.

Bruce King, a sergeant with the Sarasota Police Department, said officers have increased speed enforcement in the area in response to resident concerns. But a series of recent SPD traffic studies suggest there may not be a widespread speeding issue in the area.

“There is not the speeding problem everybody thinks they’re seeing,” King said.

King suggested instead the issue was largely related to an increase in the overall volume of traffic — still an understandable point of consternation, he said. He added that the Police Department would continue to monitor traffic in the area.

Sundstrom said the preliminary response from the city and Police Department has helped deter some bad behavior from drivers. The neighborhood hopes more steps can be taken to address residents’ fears until the construction is complete.