Some Maitland residents say something needs to be done about all the traffic that is caused by a lot of recent growth in the city.

  • Residents concerned about the increase of traffic
  • FDOT has offered a short-term solution for now
  • Send in your traffic questions to Ryan Harper

Linda Sharabba wrote in this week …

"The traffic in Maitland on (US Highway) 17/92 has become unbearable causing backups on Horatio (Avenue) as well? Stopping at every side street & intersection is causing major traffic flow problems, road rage, running lights & pollution. Is there any remedy in sight? "

We found that when we visited Maitland that even during non-peak hours, US Highway 17/92 is a congested street.

"The streets are way overcrowded. There's backups for miles," said Linda, who met with me at the intersection of US Highway 17/92 and Horatio Avenue.

With multiple apartment complexes and multi-use facilities going up in close proximity to Horatio Avenue, some residents like Linda are concerned that the city does not have a thorough plan to deal with all of it.

"My problem with what's happening right now in the City of Maitland is there's just not seem to be any planning for the population increase. We're increasing the population without doing a lot of traffic studies," said a concerned but anonymous citizen who has lived in Maitland for 35 years.

The residents say that when you lose a lane at Horatio Avenue it adds to the congestion. They also say conditions are hazardous for bikers and walkers. Linda says she is considering leaving the area because her quality of life has been affected.

"I love Maitland," said Linda. "And after living here for over 40 years, we're really talking about moving out of town. Because I don't see any remedies for it."

I was able to reach out to the Florida Department of Transportation, which maintains US Highway 17/92, and they told me that short term congestion could be alleviated once the Horatio Avenue traffic signal is repaired.

It is currently malfunctioning and in the meantime, but the programming was adjusted to give the westbound left turn movement more green time until a repair can be made.

As just a small part of the City of Maitland's master plan, eventually there will be more crosswalks, speed reductions and changes in traffic signal patterns on US Highway 17/92.

In addition, the City wants the main spine of Maitland to be shifted over to the west in downtown on its new Independence Lane corridor, which will mainly be used by pedestrians.

To help attract more of those pedestrians, Independence Square Park will be completely refurbished this year.

Thanks for your submission Linda.

And if you at home have a traffic issue or problem that you want looked at or solved, head to mynews13.com/trafficinbox and just fill out the simple form.

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