Broward County outlines Pine Island Road safety, bike and signal upgrades; construction not expected until 2028

Broward County engineers told the Tamarac City Commission on June 25 that a state-funded project to improve Pine Island Road from Commercial Boulevard to McNabb Road is now in the design phase and intends to widen the corridor, improve pedestrian and bicycle facilities and upgrade signals and lighting.

The project team, led by consultant Fernando Gomez and Broward County project manager Alejandro Martinez, said the scope includes adding a third travel lane, replacing on-street bike lanes with a 12-foot shared-use concrete path separated from traffic, upgraded pedestrian signal equipment at Commercial and McNabb and potential new signalization at Lago Del Campo. “So, my name is Fernando Gomez. I'm the consultant project manager for this project,” Gomez said during the presentation.

The design team said the county and a state Department of Transportation grant are funding the work and that the project will preserve existing intelligent transportation systems (ITS) infrastructure while bringing pedestrian lighting and accessible crossings up to current standards. Eileen Costa, a consultant on the project, said lowering the posted design speed and narrowing lane widths are part of a traffic-calming approach the county used successfully on other Pine Island Road segments. “The reduction in speed actually provides, when you have a higher volume of traffic, it provides a more consistent flow of traffic instead of a stop-and-go,” Costa said.

Why it matters: Commissioners and residents pressed the team on safety, enforcement and timing. The design team said moving bikes onto a separated path is intended to remove conflicts between bicyclists and high-speed traffic and that midblock crossings now served by rapid rectangular flashing beacons could be replaced with pedestrian hybrid beacons or HAWK signals that provide a steady red phase enforceable by officers.

Schedule and funding: The county’s consultant said design work began in April and is scheduled for an 18-month design period, with construction funding anticipated in 2028 and construction estimated to take about 24 months once it begins. The schedule presented showed project design completion in October of the following year, followed by a roughly one-year wait for construction funding.

Commissioner questions and resident concerns: Commissioners and residents asked about enforcement, outreach and interim pavement conditions. A resident urged the county to consider public-awareness and etiquette campaigns for shared-use paths, stronger pedestrian signage in school zones, and interim repaving before construction given existing pavement roughness. Alejandro Martinez said the county would consider signing, pavement marking and coordination with school zones as part of signing and pavement marking design; the consultant said the contractor will work with the county on design details and public outreach during later design milestones.

Next steps: The project remains in the design phase at under 30% completion, the team said. They plan public outreach after the commission briefing and will return necessary materials and contact information to the city clerk so residents can submit comments while design is ongoing.

Ending: Commissioners thanked the team for the briefing and encouraged continued outreach and coordination on repaving, safety treatments and school-zone markings. The commission and county reiterated that the public-design phase is the appropriate time for residents to raise site-specific concerns and request refined signing or traffic-control options.