See lights? Pull to the right
It’s 5:30 p.m.and you’re struck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Estero Boulevard. You’ve got a concrete wall to one side and a sidewalk to the other. Then you hear the sirens and see the flashing lights in your rearview mirror. But what can you do?
Ron Martin, public information officer of the Fort Myers Beach Fire District, said to follow the rule: “pull to the right for sirens and lights.”
Of course, in today’s Estero Boulevard construction, that’s difficult to do.
“If you see (a truck) coming, get as far to the right as you can and stay there until the vehicle passes,” Martin said. “Our emergency drivers are highly proficient in navigating congestion, but we need our community to be aware.”
Martin said drivers should try to get over or pull off onto side streets and wait until the emergency vehicle has passed. If someone’s in the way, the truck drivers will let them know, he said.
Despite the constraints of close quarters, Martin said the district’s response time has not increased throughout construction and that the stations have been able to maintain a quick response time.
The district works closely with all the construction entities – the town, the county and Kaye Molnar with ReFresh Estero Boulevard – to be sure it has the latest info on what the construction crews are doing and where they will be.
“Up to this point we haven’t seen any negative effects,” he said. “We routinely assess where construction is and how traffic patterns are being changed, and they are quick to notify us of any changes.”
The district also has a few tricks to work around the construction. Since the barrier was implemented, the station with the easiest access responds instead of the closest. If a truck coming from the Voorhis Street station would have to try to navigate a U-turn on Estero to get to a call, it can be easier for the San Carlos Boulevard station to respond instead.
The district also has “Rescue 31,” an ATV with a stretcher that first responders can use to get around on the beachfront or in the center lane to respond to a medical emergency.
Estero Boulevard update
Work on Estero Boulevard continues to chug along, but progress is being made.
The pavers that were cracked and had to be replaced are finished, said Kay Molnar, spokeswoman for ReFresh Estero Boulevard. After the first section of pavers sank and cracked, the project engineer had to update the design to better withstand settling. Beneath the pavers, more of the pervious rock was compacted and an addition layer of a grid material was added to help keep the pavers in place. That new design is being implemented for the rest of the paver areas, so the problem should not be recurring, Molnar said.
The barrier is up again from the Key Estero Shoppes to Pearl Street – and it’s not moving for another month as crews install the center lane drainage system.
“The goal to concentrate on that area, we know it’s season. We’re trying to get that finished up so it will be out by spring break,” Molnar said.
However, the barrier will just be shifting south: once the center lane drainage system is in, crews will begin working on the system from Chapel Street to Lovers Lane, and the barrier will go with them. This time, the barrier will be up for a longer distance than in previous areas, Molnar said, and drivers, cyclists and pedestrians will have to travel farther to make a U-turn to get to side streets.
Molnar said the length of the barrier was not yet determined as engineers were still trying to work in some breaks in the wall.
Crews are doubling up to get the work done. Molnar said the projected completion date for everything in Segment 1, from Crescent Street to Lovers Lane, is Easter.
“We’re trying to get it done and get out of that section,” she said.
Then, more work will begin in Segment 2. Molnar said the plans were nearing 100 percent designed for Segment 2 and that the county is waiting to get proposals back from contractors to determine a maximum price for construction to go to the county for approval.