[StarfishKey]

Two separate motorcycle accidents in the Upper Keys over the weekend injured 3 - fortunately, although there were serious injuries, no fatalities resulted. Both cases were likely caused by speeding and/or inattention.
Three injured in two separate motorcycle crashes in the Upper Keys | News | KeysNet

[chiligrl]

I would be in favor of a light rail to relieve some of the traffic and speeding on US1. I am not in favor of a toll to use the stretch because I (like other Keys residents) travel to work in Homestead daily and then back to the keys in the afternoon.

[StarfishKey]

Originally Posted by chiligrl

I would be in favor of a light rail to relieve some of the traffic and speeding on US1. I am not in favor of a toll to use the stretch because I (like other Keys residents) travel to work in Homestead daily and then back to the keys in the afternoon.

The toll would not apply to Monroe County residents. For example, Key Biscayne has a toll, but it only applies to non-residents. There is no reason whatsoever to charge residents - the point of the toll is to discourage incoming tourist traffic and cars that will need parking spots once in (especially in Key West). It's to protect residents, not further hurt them.

[StarfishKey]

Just a reminder to be careful out there. Multiple people have died since I last posted to this thread. And today, yet another fatality.

Georgia man dies in head-on crash Monday in the Lower Keys | News | KeysNet

[kokonutty]

Originally Posted by StarfishKey

Just a reminder to be careful out there. Multiple people have died since I last posted to this thread. And today, yet another fatality.

Georgia man dies in head-on crash Monday in the Lower Keys | News | KeysNet

And, again, it looks like the Keys resident was in the wrong lane when the head-on took place. Georgia resident vs. Peterbilt does not turn out well for the visitor.

[StarfishKey]

Originally Posted by kokonutty

And, again, it looks like the Keys resident was in the wrong lane when the head-on took place. Georgia resident vs. Peterbilt does not turn out well for the visitor.

If you follow these every single week, you would see that the people at fault vary - just like with any car accidents. Sometimes it's locals, many times it's people from out of town - it just depends on who's on the road. In the Keys we have a lot of both - visitors, and residents. But people drifting into the other lane and causing head-on collisions that lead to fatalities is a very common theme among all of them. It doesn't matter who is at fault in this particular instance and where they live, in the larger picture - what matters is that it keeps happening, over and over again. People need to be aware that the Overseas Highway is dangerous, and to take necessary precautions when driving it. There are a lot of distractions, a lot of drunk and sleepy drivers late at night, and a LOT of people speeding way over the limit at every time of day.

I hope people will take this to heart when coming down, and follow the laws and pay attention. And where possible, consider leaving the car at home and taking cabs/shuttles/the local bus instead.

[BNBR]

So a cab is supposed to be safer?

[kokonutty]

Originally Posted by StarfishKey

If you follow these every single week, you would see that the people at fault vary - just like with any car accidents. Sometimes it's locals, many times it's people from out of town - it just depends on who's on the road. In the Keys we have a lot of both - visitors, and residents. But people drifting into the other lane and causing head-on collisions that lead to fatalities is a very common theme among all of them. It doesn't matter who is at fault in this particular instance and where they live, in the larger picture - what matters is that it keeps happening, over and over again. People need to be aware that the Overseas Highway is dangerous, and to take necessary precautions when driving it. There are a lot of distractions, a lot of drunk and sleepy drivers late at night, and a LOT of people speeding way over the limit at every time of day.

I hope people will take this to heart when coming down, and follow the laws and pay attention. And where possible, consider leaving the car at home and taking cabs/shuttles/the local bus instead.

Without going back to look at specifics, many posts similar to the one I responded to seem to imply that the visitors need to exercise more care when the two incidents I remember referencing were apparently caused by locals.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

We just arrived in Tampa yesterday and drove down to the Everglades. Planning to drive to Key West on Tuesday -- wish me luck.

The traffic from Tampa to Naples was HORRENDOUS. So many speeders and tailgaters! We were going ten miles over the speed limit and had to drive in the far right lane on a three lane highway because everyone was passing us when we were in the middle lane. And the crazies that were changing lanes even if there wasn't really enough room to do so. And how hard is it to use a turn signal?

Even on the Tamiami Trail, if we weren't going at least ten miles over the speed limit we were tailgated. And what's with the guys on their ATV's driving down the shoulder for miles?