A traffic safety issue at the intersection of N.W. 67 Avenue and Windmill Gate Road in Miami Lakes took a turn for the worse last month when two back-to-back accidents left several people seriously injured and had to be airlifted to the hospital.
Traffic congestion in the area poses a safety hazard for motorists and pedestrians, as vehicles have little room to make right or left turns on the two-lane road leading in and out of the residential community, hindered by a bus shelter and pavement markings in front of the commercial area.
The traffic along Ludlam Road is backed up for almost a mile between the Palmetto Expressway and Miami Lakeway South during rush hours, making it difficult for motorists to exit or enter the residential community near the library and shopping center.
To eschew more tragedies, Miami Lakes and Miami-Dade officials met recently in the town to address the bottleneck and safety issues.
According to a report furnished by the town, Miami-Dade put a signal change for the southbound easternmost left lane at Windmill Gate, a protected left turn only and not permissive. Vehicles can only make a left turn on a green arrow.
In addition, Miami Lakes said the county removed the chevron striping pavement marking the easternmost nothbound right lane in front of the shopping center.
For additional changes, the town will move the bus shelter and bus stop sign about 200 feet south to give motorists enough room to make a right turn at the intersection at Windmill Gate Road and Ludlum Road.
Miami Lakes and the county also hashed out long term solutions, including adding an additional through lane northbound on Ludlum Road between Loch Ness Drive and the Palmetto Expressway to add capacity and enhance the mobility and safety near the intersections; acquiring additional right-of-war from the Miami-Dade fire station to allow an additional northbound lane on N.W. 67 Avenue; reducing the median widths along N.W. 67 Avenue or reducing the lane widths to 10 feet to add an additional northbound lane; and removing the traffic separator located on the easternmost right lane near the Palmetto Expressway to allow the easternmost right lane to be a dedicated through and right turn lane.
In conjunction with the busy roadway improvements, Miami Lakes is working with the county to widen Windmill Gate Road to four lanes to alleviate gridlock by acquiring a portion of the right-of-way from the Miami-Dade library.