On July 29, the County issued a notice to proceed on a $575,000 landscape improvement project on Via DeLuna Drive. The project will include planting more than 2,000 palm trees, as well as various types of grasses, groundcover and flowering plants in the medians. The enhanced roadway, which will also feature sidewalks and bicycle lanes, is funded by the Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) and managed by Escambia County through an interlocal agreement. A typical section of the Via DeLuna improvements, include representative samples of landscaping is attached at the end of this article.
The landscape upgrades will serve to complement a $430, 000 roadway project initiated this past May when Escambia County’s Public Works Department began construction on improvements designed to enhance traffic flow and address safety concerns for pedestrians. A number of improvements have been completed over the past few months, including:
- The extension of the fourth lane leading to and coming from the toll plaza. This extension provides a dedicated lane from the foot of the Bob Sikes Bridge on the north side of the plaza to approximately the water tanks and the south side of the plaza, giving vehicles more time to merge in and out of traffic.
- Lengthening the eastern transponder pass lane from the foot of the bridge to the toll plaza.
- Extending the turn lane into the Grand Marlin restaurant and bridge fishing pier on the south side of the toll plaza.
This project was funded through a combination of Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) dollars and revenue from the Bob Sikes Toll cost center. Additional improvements are on the way this Fall including:
- Installing a pedestrian crosswalk with pavement embedded flashing lights on Pensacola Beach Boulevard at the Quietwater Beach pavilion area to the east and Pensacola Beach Marina and the Elk’s Lodge on the west side of the street.
- Upgrading the toll plaza’s transponder readers and hardware to make them operate more efficiently. During this stage of the improvements, toll plaza software and hardware will be upgraded to eliminate toll gate arms, which slow traffic. The upgrades will include the installation of the state’s prepaid toll program, SunPass, or a similar system. This will significantly improve traffic flow through the toll booth, more than doubling the number of cars able to pass through the plaza during peak times to 2,350 cars per hour.
- Installation of a photo enforcement system will be installed at the three manned booths where toll takers will continue to take cash. This will allow the lane arms to be removed, and violators who pass through the toll plaza without paying will receive a bill for the $1 toll, plus additional surcharges. Nonpayment of the toll and surcharges could result in a $100 fine plus additional surcharges per a state law governing toll plazas.
The County will present a plan for an additional $650,000 in public infrastructure improvements to the SRIA at their August 14 board meeting. This latest project – funded through Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) monies tied to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill restoration efforts – will focus upgrades along the access road adjacent to Quietwater Beach. The upgrade work is expected to begin in October and includes:
- Extending the access road from the Bob Sikes Bridge fishing pier to Quietwater Beach.
- Improving a bike lane/pedestrian path on the east side of the access road.
- Adding approximately 40 new parking spaces, three to four spaces for boat and trailer parking and building a concrete boat launch area just south of Morgan Park.
- Planting landscape and adding fencing between Morgan Park and the parking lot.
To receive the most up-to-date information on this project, including potential traffic interruptions follow Escambia County on Twitter @mypensacolabch.
For questions regarding this project, contact Matt Mooneyham, Program Manager, at [email protected].
