Long-awaited Raleigh Street improvements in the works
Each morning, packs of schoolchildren traipse to nearby schools on sidewalks along Orlando’s Raleigh Street. In the afternoon and evening, they walk back home to nearby Carver Shores and Timberleaf, and some stop at the local Boys and Girls Club.
In rush-hour traffic, vehicles are crammed on the two-lane road with backups caused by drivers stuck trying to turn left into neighborhoods. Most days, cars are slowed between Kirkman Road and Ivey Lane.
Soon, the road may be widened to allow left turns into neighborhoods and for traffic to flow freer, with new 6-foot sidewalks and bike trails to allow safer travels for drivers and pedestrians alike.
Negotiations between Orlando and Orange County to make improvements date back several years. Now, things are nearing fruition, with the Orlando City Council expected to consider a deal next month.
“They’ve been wanting this for a long time,” Commissioner Sam Ings said. “It should also help out the Boys and Girls Club and provide sidewalks in front of that particular center.”
The stretch of Raleigh Street — running from just east of Kozart Street west to Kirkman Road — is about a mile and a half, and the improvements accommodate the current traffic flow in the area as well as potential future growth.
The left turn lanes could be located at Broome Avenue, Kozart Street and Lescott Lane.
Also, in previous years heavy rains brought flooding to the area, but that hasn’t been a problem since roadside ditches were dug. Plans call for upgraded drainage, which will send stormwater underground and into Shingle Creek.
Orange County’s contribution is capped at $1 million and it will
turn over control of the road to Orlando, which is currently slated to contribute $1.6 million. Orlando’s total may change due to rising construction cost and other factors.
Juanita Vinson, president of the Carver Shores homeowners association, said residents have been hearing about plans for years and attended meetings in the past but had lost faith that they’d ever materialize.
“Especially at Kozart [Street], there’s no turning [lane],” said Vinson, who has lived there since 1983. “You have to wait there until the traffic clears and a lot of times you have to sit for a while and that backs [Raleigh Street] up.”
Citywide, sidewalks are prioritized in areas of high pedestrian traffic and near schools that have accessible ramps to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, deputy public works director Jim Hunt said.
Last year, the Westmoreland Path added about two miles of sidewalk made from recycled tires between Holden Heights and Colonial Drive near the Orange County Public Schools Academic Center for Excellence, and another mile on Bumby Avenue between Colonial Drive and Corrine Avenue.
But at Raleigh Street, much of the problem stems from a heavy flow of traffic on the two-lane street. Hunt said not only is it packed with cars but also school and Lynx buses.
“We recognize that it’s an important arterial for pedestrians to use and drivers,” he said. “It’s not only an annoyance for drivers, but it places pedestrians at risk when drivers get frustrated.”
Vinson said it’s been a while since she’d heard plans about the upgrades. She frequently sees cyclists and kids walking to nearby Carver Shores Middle School and Eccleston Elementary School and said the improvements will make a big difference.
“I was wondering when it was going to be our time,” Vinson said. “It will be good to see some improvements out our way.”