What should be done at Belleair Beach causeway intersection with Gulf Boulevard?

BELLEAIR BEACH — City and county officials had a discussion at a July 1 meeting about possible changes to the intersection at Causeway and Gulf boulevards to address safety concerns there.

While no decisions were made on what happens next, the City Council session provided an opportunity for the Pinellas County public works team to give an update on the project and for Belleair Beach officials to make their thoughts known.

Both Causeway and Gulf boulevards are county roads, so Pinellas County owns the intersection, but they are working with the city to come up with potential changes that would be acceptable to local residents.

Tom Washburn, the county’s public works director, gave a little background on the project, saying the city contacted his office in 2020 with complaints about traffic problems on Gulf Boulevard. That was primarily the backup of traffic through the city as people were coming from Clearwater Beach to go back to the mainland.

The county hired a consultant who recommended changing the single left-turn lane at Gulf and Causeway boulevards to two lanes turning left side-by-side. This was implemented in 2021 on a trial basis, with the goal of improving traffic flow going off the island.

As time went by, some residents began reporting the dual turn lanes presented big safety risks, primarily because the turn was too sharp and there were many near-misses as side-by-side vehicles came too close while trying to stay in their lane. Then, after turning, there was the problem of vehicles in the right lane trying to make a quick merge into the left lane, with more near-misses.

Council member Lloyd Roberts was one of those who viewed the dual lanes as unsafe. At his urging in 2023, the city went back to the county, asking them to use their data and analysis tools to study what would happen if the two turn lanes were changed back to one, and to consider other options.

“I think everyone would agree that if you have a single lane of traffic turning left on the causeway, that would be safer than having two lanes turning,” said Roberts. He added, “If it ever happens where two cars are turning left, and the inside car bumps the outside car and that car jumps the curb, and in the worst-case scenario there’s a pedestrian there, we wouldn’t want to think about what happens.”

Roberts acknowledged the improvement in traffic flow with two lanes, but said “if it is at the risk of safety, I’ll never be in favor of that.” He recommended going back to the one-turn-lane design, and considering removing the crosswalk island on Gulf Boulevard just north of the intersection so traffic can queue up in the middle lane.

Mayor Dave Gattis objected to Roberts’ suggestion to remove the crosswalk island. Contrary to Roberts’ desire for the one-turn-lane solution, Gattis was focused on making the dual lane design safer. He proposed moving the stop lines back on Causeway Bouevard westbound as well as on Gulf Boulevard southbound. That would provide more space in the intersection to make a smooth turn.

“The current radius for turning is too steep. By moving the stop lines, you get a bigger radius for turning,” said Gattis.

Council member Kim Shaw Elliott said that moving back the stop line and crosswalk on Causeway Boulevard makes it harder for cars coming up from the south turning east to see pedestrians crossing.

Gattis’ suggestion was to install a “no-right-turn light” like they have in Largo to prohibit cars turning on to the causeway when pedestrians are crossing.

With regard to the merging problem that occurs as the two lanes go to one on Causeway Boulevard, Washburn said there is a formula for determining how long that lane needs to be. In this case, the distance is 250 feet minimum, and “you have roughly 80 more feet than what’s required.” Saying the first merge sign is a little too early, he recommended moving that sign eastward, so vehicles in the curb lane take a little more time to merge gradually into the left lane.

Council member Frank Bankard said that may not help matters, because it’s human nature to try to jump into an opening right away when making the merge.

The team from the county had a list of recommended actions. First, they were in agreement with moving the stop lines to improve the turning radius on the dual lane design. They also recommended refreshing painted markings which have become faded, and adding yellow guidelines beside the white dotted lines to help guide motorists on the left turns from the north.

City Manager Kyle Riefler spoke in favor of following the county’s recommendations. “They put all the scenarios into their models. They do this every day,” he said, adding that the city can propose other options for the county to study.

In their closing comments, Elliott said she was in agreement with the recommendations being made to improve the current design, but Bankard was concerned with the safety issues.

“This is the problem. You’re trying to merge all these cars and there’s not enough room. There’s a simple solution,” said Bankard.

Gattis responded, “And what is your simple solution?”

Bankard replied, “I think we should go back to the way it was. I agree with Mr. Roberts — if somebody gets hit there, I’m not going to be responsible either.”

Gattis concluded by telling the county team, “We look forward to hearing if you’ve changed your opinion, or whatever it is that you’re planning on doing, we would like to know what it is before it actually happens, just to give us the opportunity to talk about it and present it to the community.”