The University of Florida is working with city and state officials to address traffic safety in and around campus.
The changes, which UF announced to the full campus in an email Wednesday morning, follow crashes on West University Avenue that killed two students and a faculty member over the past two months.
UF Chief Operating Officer Charles Lane and Vice President for Student Affairs D’Andra Mull wrote the email, which listed several short- and long-term projects to be enacted on campus.
The short-term measures include more police patrols focused on catching crosswalk, pedestrian, speeding and scooter violations, as well as the installation of LED radar message boards that monitor vehicles’ speed and more pedestrian safety signage. The University Avenue crosswalks are also being repainted, according to the email.
The measures are a result of the collaboration of the university with the city of Gainesville, the Florida Department of Transportation and the University Police Department.
The email also announced two major long-term projects to improve traffic safety in the future.
The university is working with FDOT to begin construction of a pedestrian walkway at UF’s Newell Gateway and the introduction of new pedestrian crossings with signals.
The email also listed the proposition of a “complete streets” study, which is an approach integrating people in the planning and designing of the streets, and the construction of safe paths for bicycles and pedestrians parallel to the roadway.
Other campus security projects were also introduced in the email, including the use of license plate readers and enhanced LED lighting.