Florida lawmaker proposes red lights at crosswalks, force drivers to stop

The death of a 12-year-old girl in the state has made a Florida lawmaker determined to push for legislation that could make crossing the street safer. People we spoke to like the proposal at the state level.

Sophia Nelson was hit and killed while using a crosswalk in Brevard County this past December.

State Rep. Randy Fine wants to pass legislation that would force drivers to hit the brakes while people are in crosswalks. The bill would change yellow lights at crosswalks to red lights.

“It’s about saving lives,” Fine said. “You push the button, at some point after you push the button, the light would turn red.”

When drivers approach a flashing yellow crosswalk, they are supposed to stop to let pedestrians cross. But that doesn’t always happen, and it’s among reasons why Florida is one of the most dangerous states for pedestrians.

Rep. Fine in Brevard County doesn’t believe the setup for crosswalks keeps Floridians safe currently.

“When the see a yellow light, some speed up,” Fine said. “We don’t need more people to be killed because drivers don’t understand what they mean.”

Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said, between January and September 2019, 702 pedestrians were killed on streets in the state.

Time Turco agrees something must be done to prevent those kinds of statistics in the future.

“I see so many cars rip through a yellow light in traffic signals, I don’t think yellow means anything to drivers,” Turco said. “The more information drivers have that pedestrians are crossing, it’ll be safer for pedestrians to cross.”

Fine said if he can’t get the lights changed from yellow to red, he wants the signs gone because he fears pedestrians put themselves at risk believing drivers will yield the right of way when they see yellow. He hopes he can get the measure through the legislature and onto Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk this year.

Doug Doughty told us a car nearly hit him while he used a crosswalk. He believes Fine’s proposal will help. He does not want to see them taken away.

“Somebody’s going to come flying through there, and I think it would be an accident waiting to happen,” Doughty said.

Rep. Fine believes his bill is an easy piece of legislation to pass in the state.

“I mean, look, it’s very simple: Red means stop; yellow does not,” Fine said. “And if we want drivers to stop when there’s a pedestrian in the crosswalk, we need to tell them to stop.”