Several readers submitted letters to Ocala-News.com to share their thoughts on the timing of traffic lights in Ocala/Marion County.
“This is in response to the letter written about the traffic lights at 484 and 475. That is not the only location that traffic is extremely heavy and the lights are ridiculous. There’s Belleview, Maricamp, and 17th Street, just to name a few. It is not just the lights, it is the amount of new residents the county keeps letting in. Again, stop the growth in Marion County. The roads, the traffic, the infrastructure, the water, and the longtime residents of Marion County cannot support the influx of people. Let Marion County be Marion County, not Dade, Orange, or Hillsborough Counties. It is not a competition,” says Summerfield resident Jo Cummings.
“It’s not just that the lights alone are a mess. You sit at one for 15 minutes waiting for it to turn only for drivers to just sit and not watch when it changes. It takes me almost an hour to get from 44th Avenue to Highway 200. An hour. The traffic is so backed up you can’t move. The highway or street department has no idea how to time them. Getting on 44th Avenue to the overpass on Highway 27, the lights on Highway 27 are not timed right – one light turns red and the next green? These lights here are frustrating. Who is in charge of the traffic lights? I have never been in a city as frustrating as this. There is no excuse for it. The drivers need to pay attention when driving. Be courteous to others. Put cellphones down and pay attention. The street and highway departments need to fix the lights. On 27th Avenue, it takes half an hour to get to Highway 200,” says Regina Pickett, Ocala resident.
“Those lights have been like that for probably 25 years. I remember sitting at that intersection (484 and 475) and counting ten red lights. People would get upset and pull out in front of a line of traffic out of frustration. It’s way past time that the lights get taken care of, or are they waiting for a horrendous accident with multiple deaths before something is done? We have been tempting fate,” says Summerfield resident Lisa Stohl.