Putting Your Best Foot Forward to Keep PEDS Safe

Best Foot Forward was born out of the belief that the status quo is unacceptable. Officials in Seminole County resolve to tackle the problem of pedestrian deaths by joining with BFF to reduce the number of driver-versus-pedestrian crashes by focusing on getting more drivers to yield to people in marked crosswalks, as Florida law requires. It uses the “Triple E” approach that combines low-cost engineering, community education and high-visibility enforcement to achieve results.

Since BFF launched in Orange County in 2012 and Osceola County in 2017, we’ve seen the number of drivers yielding increase by more than 40% on monitored crosswalks. Isn’t it amazing what a group of BFF’s can do?

Seminole County’s 17 new partners joined the 21 existing partners in Orange and Osceola County, making Best Foot Forward the largest grassroots coalitions in the nation working to lower pedestrian fatalities and injuries.

Seminole Coalition Partners: Stepping Up for Safety

The Seminole Coalition Putting their Best Foot Forward: Seminole County Seminole County Sheriff’s Office City of Casselberry Casselberry Police Department City of Longwood Longwood Police Department City of Oviedo Oviedo Police Department City of Sanford Sanford Police Department City of Winter Springs Winter Springs Police Department Florida Department of Health: Seminole County Altamonte Springs Police Department Seminole County Public Schools Seminole County Crossing Guards

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Video Highlights of the Best Foot Forward Program Launch

Video of Full Launch Ceremony

View Launch Ceremony Pictures

Videos from Media Coverage

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Passed Local Resolutions in Support of Joining the Best Foot Forward Coalition

Crosswalks Selected for Seminole

The Best Foot Forward (BFF) coalition has selected crosswalks in each jurisdiction to monitor and track whether more drivers yield and stop for pedestrians crossing at these locations after installing low-cost engineering countermeasures, educating local residents living within a two-mile radius and enforcing Florida’s driver yield law. To get started, Best Foot Forward’s data collectors collect baseline data of the percentage of drivers yielding and stopping for pedestrians at these crosswalks.

Tony is BFF’s expert data collector. He is wearing the Orange T-shirt in the pictures below. Tony knows a lot about crosswalks because he was the crossing guard trainer for the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. For a crosswalk to be “BFF certified,” Tony and the city staff transportation planners or traffic engineers and law enforcement officers go to each crosswalk to ensure it meets the BFF criteria seen here.

The second step is to collect baseline data on driver yielding behaviour at these crosswalk locations, using the NHTSA data collection methodology approach. Now, as we actively engage and educate residents, apply low-cost engineering changes such as signage and conduct high-visibility enforcement, we’re able to measure whether these measures are making a difference. Are more drivers complying with Florida’s driver yield laws by stopping for pedestrians at these marked crosswalks? Only time will tell.

GOOGLE MAP WITH PILOT CROSSWALKS

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Past BFF News in Seminole

How to Select a BFF Crosswalk: A Look Into ‘The Room Where It Happens’ in Seminole County
May 27, 2019

Coming Soon: BFF in Seminole County
February 11, 2019