Study seeks to reduce drivers speeding, fatalities on Bonita Beach Rd

A study is underway to make a Bonita Springs roadway safer. It seeks to cut down the number of drivers who are exceeding the speed limit.

Bonita Beach Road has seen many deadly crashes, including a recent one where an SUV and a truck crash. The SUV propelled into a cyclist.

Those accidents are among the reasons neighbors living among Bonita Beach Rd. and Old 41 Road said it is a nightmare every time they get behind the wheel.

Beyond crashes, drivers are always speeding; traffic is constantly heavy and congested.

“Sometimes it takes a half-an-hour to go from 41 down to this point,” said Manny Silva, a nearby resident.

“We’ve been here for seven years and we do see it increasing every year,” said Al Widen, a neighbor. “The traffic, the amount of people, the activity and the amount of accidents and the severity of what can happen, which is two, three accidents this year already.”

It is a problem we have told WINK News viewers over the last several months. Since the beginning of the year, two people have died along the stretch of road. Peter Simmons, mayor of Bonita Springs, said city leaders shot down the idea of a flyover four years ago. But, he recognizes the need for change.

“Right now the intersection of 41 and Bonita Beach Rd. is the only way that you can cross that intersection,” Simmons said. “Lack of a better term, we’re trying to create a grid system down there, which will give you a second or a third tier road so people can avoid that intersection.”

With the Quadrant Plan, the council wants to add an extension to Windsor Road and Arroyal Road Simmons said it would benefit drivers and bikers.

“We’ve purchased some land in anticipation of the quadrant plan,” Simmons said. “Things have been done on our end. Bonita Springs with the Lee County MPO right now, this project has been elevated and it’s time to move forward.”

The Lee County Metropolitan Planning Organization is an internal planning department based in Cape Coral. Neighbors said they are behind an effort that will make roadways safer. But changes are still years away.

“I think it’s a great idea,” Silva said. “It’s just too many accidents happening here with people getting killed.”