Some viewers, along with the local police department, are concerned with drivers taking an illegal left turn in St. Petersburg.

  • Vehicles are prohibited from turning left from 94th Avenue onto Gandy
  • However, many drivers continue to turn left
  • Transportation officials are adding additional signage to warn drivers

Officer Robert Peters says he honestly doesn't want to write tickets all day.

But that's exactly what he ends up doing on 94th Avenue North at Gandy Boulevard, where construction has been ongoing for months.

Signs indicate that vehicles are prohibited from turning left from 94th Avenue onto Gandy Boulevard, yet vehicles continue turn left. In fact, violators became so numerous that a construction contractor asked the St. Petersburg Police Department to help with traffic.

"(Construction officials) are worried about the safety of his workers while they're out there trying to do their jobs," Peters said.

Signs banning the left turns are situated before the eastbound Gandy lanes and two are underneath the overpass. Also, there are two signs on a signpole at the westbound Gandy intersection.

To make the situation worse, there is no turn lane, so when a car stops to make the (illegal) turn, it backs up traffic behind them.

"That's probably one of the biggest effects you'll see from this behavior," Peters said. "Not only do people stop in the middle of the intersection, the southbound traffic is trying to get through and it's backing up all the way to the eastbound side of Gandy and farther on 94th Avenue."

Ticketed drivers are almost responding in unison: "We've always been able to turn there."

For drivers saying the three signs that are there are not enough, Florida Department of Transportation Spokesperson Kris Carson said one more will be added.

"We're actually going to add another sign on a span wire," Carson said. "So as they're looking up they'll see an additional sign that say no left turns."

The appropriate action at the intersection is to drive straight through at Gandy to 16th Street North then turn left and return to Gandy Boulevard.