FORT MYERS, Fla. — On Monday, October 28, Fort Myers Police Officer Ryan Beiner took your Fort Myers Community Correspondent, Miyoshi Price, to a crosswalk on Cleveland near the Coronado Middle and High School.
Officer Beiner says it's just one of many congested areas that pose a risk of crashes, especially to pedestrians and people on bicycles...
People like Daryl Shipp, who said he's had bike crashes in the city before.
Shipp sees it as a problem of infrastructure. He says there aren't enough sidewalks.
But he added that drivers don't pay attention to others sharing their roads. "It's rules to riding the bicycle, just like a car, and you supposed to be on the right side," said Shipp.
Hear from Daryl Shipp and Officer Beiner by clicking below:
That's why Officer Beiner says the education piece of their operation is so important, and that his team is connecting with drivers whom, they see, hog the road or make other driving errors.
"It actually is more beneficial in both of our parts to just explain what they did wrong to correct that action," says Beiner.
Besides traffic tickets, Officer Beiner's traffic unit is also passing out flyers to people along the Cleveland Avenue and Palm Beach Boulevard corridors.
"The key goal here, is education over enforcement," says Officer Beiner.
Inside, the flyer states in both English and Spanish, how to cross the street and use crosswalks correctly. Police are also working to get Creole added to these flyers.
The operation is run through the Florida Department of Transportation.
And Officer Beiner says he sees some progress. He said the city has not had as many deadly pedestrian crashes this year as in past years. And when extensive ongoing road construction is finished, there will be more safety features.
"Like the Colonial and Six Mile Corridor, Colonial and I-75 Corridor, and Colonial and Fowler intersections that are currently under construction, they are implementing new bicycle lanes," says Beiner. "You'll see them as you drive by; they're green."
Shipp says he'll be glad to see them...adding that safer pathways were needed all over the city, for all residents, regardless of how they may choose to travel.
