Making Immokalee Road safer after dangerous crashes

Author: Jillian Haggerty
Published: Updated:
Immokalee Road traffic
Credit: WINK News

There is a new effort in Collier County to prevent dangerous crashes.

On Tuesday, we heard from Collier County leaders who said something needs to be done about Immokalee Road and Logan Boulevard after many recent crashes.

“I think it was very clear that as we get more congested, there are more concerns for traffic safety,” said Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk.

Rambosk and the Collier County Transportation Management Services spoke at the Collier County commissioner’s meeting about how often crashes happen, especially on Immokalee Road and Logan Boulevard.

“This is 5 years of crash data on Immokalee and Logan. We had 123 crashes that occurred at that intersection, and prior to the fatal crash on September 5, we have had no fatalities in the last 10 years at this intersection,” said Anthony Khawaja, the chief engineer of traffic operations.

So, it begs the question of why now?

We asked the sheriff if this had anything to do with the fatal crash on Sept. 5 that killed 47-year-old Heather Anderson and hospitalized her son and his friend. Deputies said a semi truck ran a red light and hit the driver’s side of the SUV.

“The thing that drove me more was the commitment of the community to contact us, and then we scheduled a meeting with different groups, individual with the mom’s group here in Collier County,” Rambosk said.

A woman involved with the Naples Mom Group, who has collected more than 3,000 signatures calling for safer roads and stricter consequences for traffic violations in Southwest Florida, spoke on behalf of the crash Immokalee and Logan Blvd., saying there needs to be a change.

“Almost everyone I have spoken to is afraid to drive and feels unsafe. We need more Florida Highway Patrol and more local police presence on our roads. It matters and makes a difference,” she said.

The commissioners and the sheriff plan to meet in the next several weeks to discuss the next steps. The sheriff is also planning a traffic campaign to promote safer streets.

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