City hears FDOT plan to repurpose lanes on Federal Highway for wider bike lanes, sidewalks and safety upgrades

City staff and Florida Department of Transportation consultants outlined a lane-repurposing plan for Federal Highway (US 1) during a Boca Raton City Council workshop on Sept. 9, 2024. The concept would convert outside travel lanes to a buffered bicycle lane and wider sidewalks on the section from Camino Real to Southeast Meissner and would mill and resurface the roadway north to Northeast Meissner to add a wider buffered bicycle lane and pedestrian improvements.

The presentation, given by the consultant who self-identified as Frank Panayo and a FDOT project manager introduced in the meeting, described three project segments with different treatments: (1) Camino Real to Southeast Meissner—repurposing outside lanes to space for a buffer bike lane and sidewalks up to 11 feet; (2) Southeast Meissner to Northeast 2nd Street—right-of-way–constrained area where the project would narrow inside travel lanes to create a 2-foot buffer; and (3) Northeast 2nd Street to Northeast Meissner—a curve where wider planting strips allow retaining 11-foot travel…