Boca Raton hears FDOT plan to repurpose U.S. 1 lanes for bike and pedestrian upgrades, debate over protected lanes

Boca Raton City Council members on Sept. 9 received an update from city staff and Florida Department of Transportation designers proposing to repurpose the outside lanes of U.S. 1 between Camino Real and Northeast Meisner to create buffered bike lanes and wider sidewalks, with construction targeted to begin in 2025 and design completion scheduled for December 2025.

The presentation, led by Frank Panayo, described three corridor segments: a southern repurposing segment that would remove outside travel lanes to provide an 11-foot sidewalk and a buffered bike lane, a middle portion with limited right-of-way where the project would narrow lanes to create a 2-foot buffer adjacent to a 5-foot bike lane, and a northern stretch that would be milled and resurfaced to incorporate the wider buffer lane. The plan also includes a proposed protected pedestrian crosswalk at Park Plaza Real and some intersection signal work at Camino Real.

Nathan George, the city’s transportation, mobility and connectivity director, said the concept is a conventional 6-to-4 road diet that would typically include a 5-foot bike lane with a 2-foot striped buffer. He cited a Federal Highway Administration study (September 2023) showing about a 50% reduction in bike-type crashes when separated facilities are provided and said the city’s Vision Zero and complete-streets policies favor physical separation where feasible. "Providing that physical protection or the vertical separation" is an important safety priority, he said.

FDOT and the project consultant told council that frequent side streets in the southern repurposing segment—about 290 feet apart in places—create repeated breaks in any continuous physical barrier. The designers said those interruptions could increase confusion for drivers and bicyclists and pose hazards (for example, where a separated element might be struck by a cyclist’s pedal). As a result, the current concept does not include a continuous, fixed barrier for the whole southern segment; staff and FDOT are instead evaluating a range of protection options.

Naresh Majorepo, the city traffic engineer, said the project is slightly beyond 30% design and that choosing a protection system (bollards, raised curbs that allow drainage, or other treatments) will affect costs and require policy direction before moving to 90% design. He added that the city has been discussing different materials and curb types that allow drainage while providing protection.

Deputy Mayor Drucker pressed for protection wherever it can be implemented, saying "a bike lane is not a bike lane if it's not protected," and asked staff to pursue funding options, including community redevelopment authority funds and FDOT grants. Council members also sought assurances on signage and transitions; staff confirmed the plan calls for reducing the design speed from 40 to 35 miles per hour in the treated downtown corridor and said the city controls signal timing and can evaluate leading bicycle intervals if needed.

Councilmembers and staff emphasized the need for consistent treatment and clear transitions where the project ends and joins adjacent segments with different speeds or lane configurations. Staff said they would return with refined options, cost implications and recommendations on a protection strategy so the council could give formal direction at the policy level before the next major design milestone.

The presentation concluded with staff noting the tight schedule: designers must complete the project design by December 2025 to keep the construction timeline on track. Council members thanked staff and the FDOT team for the briefing; no formal vote was taken at the workshop.