ORLANDO, Fla. — Orange County commissioners approved funding for a study and design to construct a pedestrian bridge at the intersection of International Drive and Sand Lake Road.
They say Orlando is number 18 in the country for pedestrian fatalities and want to make it safer.
Orlando resident Joy Mensch says it’s tough driving on I-Drive, saying, “You’re driving and people just dart over.”
At Sand Lake Road and I-Drive, experts say more than 22,000 vehicles travel there a day.
One pedestrian, Sofie Payne, described crossing the highway at the crosswalk with her two babies as “scary with all the cars.”
According to a county study, from May 2017 to May 2022, there were 661 crashes. Twelve involved pedestrians, and one involved a bicycle.
Michelle Lowery manages Harley-Davidson at the corner of the intersection.
“It can be dangerous at times,” she said. “We actually had a car come up and actually almost hit our building.”
That’s why the county is reviewing a plan to build a pedestrian bridge that looks like a drone. It includes an elevated pedestrian bridge accessible from four corners of the intersection, with an elevator and stairs.
“The drone is a work of art with curves and is gorgeous. It’s not cheap,” said business owner Joshua Wallack, who is also on the board of the I-Drive improvement district. He said the high-tech design is going to be around $35 million.
According to the county, construction of the bridge will require landowners like Wallack to donate property from three of the four corners.
“We will probably give some land for the bridge landing and all four corners,” Wallack said.
WFTV went to Commissioner Mike Scott for answers on where the money comes from. He responded, “We have funding in this area. We’ve budgeted for it. This is a multiyear project. And so we’re getting closer to the finish line, however, we are looking for different federal and state opportunities to save some of the taxpayer dollars.”
Commissioners hope to have the pedestrian bridge built by 2030.
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