Traffic congestion has become the most frequently cited daily threat to the quality of life in Palm Beach, local officials say.
“Traffic has always been a concern,” Town Manager Kirk Blouin told the Town Council on Tuesday. “In the last few years, it’s been worse. In 2024, it’s at the breaking point.”
Local government can’t eliminate the problem, which is tied to many factors, including explosive regional growth, tourism, widespread construction and a steady parade of contractors and service personnel moving on and off this small barrier island.
But Blouin said the town is doing all that it can. The council examined nearly 30 traffic mitigation initiatives, some of which are in progress and others which could be adopted soon or in the future.
Blouin said some of the traffic headaches are rooted in causes beyond the town’s control. As examples, he cited the U.S. Secret Service’s closure of South Ocean Boulevard near Mar-a-Lago when President-elect Donald Trump is in town, and the barges on the Intracoastal Waterway that can force two simultaneous drawbridge openings, tossing vehicular traffic into chaos.
“None of these items will solve the traffic problem,” Blouin said of the list of 28 traffic mitigation measures before the council. “These ideas are incremental … But that doesn’t stop us from trying to alleviate traffic. We are working hard on this every day.”
Following several hours of council discussion and public comment, the council agreed on Tuesday to undertake some initiatives while continuing to study and consider others.
The council endorsed staff exploration of ways to maximize traffic capacity on North County Road during the peak afternoon commute time.
The town’s contracted vendor, Kimley Horn and associates, will present recommendations for intersection and/or traffic lane flow redesign to the council.
The council also asked residents to be part of the solution to the traffic problem by amending home staff and service hours so they are outside of the peak travel hours.
In addition to known traffic impacts and bridge schedules being posted on the town’s TRAFFIC IMPACTS webpage, cameras will be installed on the bridges so residents and visitors can view real-time traffic on the town’s website and plan trips accordingly.
Blouin will present a monthly traffic update to the council as a recurring agenda item.
The town is coordinating with Florida Power & Light to delay some aspects of utility undergrounding work until the end of season as another way to lessen traffic woes.
Blouin said that, after Trump returns to the presidency and the White House on January 20, the traffic barricades near Mar-a-Lago won’t be needed as often.
The council also decided to expand the paid-parking program into some areas where there are still on-street spaces that are free but time-limited. That will require the town to order new parking signs and will take at least a month or two to implement. A detailed staff report will be delivered to the council next month, Blouin said.
In an attempt to ease traffic volume during morning and afternoon rush hours, the council initially decided to change the allowed work hours for construction crews to 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. on weekdays, instead of the previous 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. But the council reversed that decision at its Wednesday meeting after hearing from land-use attorney James Crowley, who said the new schedule would have a disastrous impact on active construction projects. The council said it will revisit the issue at its January meeting.
A recent change in the permitted work hours for landscape companies remains in effect, at 7:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. on weekdays. Their hours were previously 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during winter, and 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. during summer.
The council decided against increasing the threshold for town-serving properties from a minimum of 50 percent town customers (those who live or work in town, or who are guests of town accommodations) to a new minimum of 75 percent or higher.
Blouin said the change would send a “strong message” to the business community. But Councilman Lew Crampton objected, pointing out that the town-serving law is impossible to enforce at current staff levels.
“It is not a useful technique, to limit [the percentage of out-of-town] folks if we can’t enforce it,” Crampton said.
The council discussed but opted against immediately imposing a temporary moratorium on new construction. But it didn’t rule that out for the future.
Zoning Director Wayne Bergman said there were currently about 700 active building permits for major construction projects in the town.
Michael McCarty, resident and restaurateur, said intensification of property use is a big driver behind the traffic problems on the island. He cited the Mandel Recreation Center, renovation of the Royal Poinciana Playhouse building, and the proposed expansion of the Palm Beach Synagogue as a few examples.
Council President Bobbie Lindsay said a construction moratorium would be “pretty radical” and requires more study. But she said, “Clearly, there is some desire to limit the number of permits issued in this town all at once.”
Crampton said he couldn’t support a construction moratorium without the proper research and planning to back it up.
“We are acting way too quickly and comprehensively if we do a moratorium,” he said.
Bergman said a moratorium would not prevent construction of projects that have already been approved by the town.
“We have a lot of large commercial projects coming our way, but many of those are already in the pipeline,” Bergman said.
On another note, Fire-Rescue Chief Sean Baker said the department is working closely with the Secret Service and Police Department to mitigate traffic challenges, and that emergency response times have decreased.
But the department needs to do more to ensure that emergency vehicles are not trapped in their stations by a traffic jam whenever a call comes in, he said.
‘We are trying to get the areas in front of [the three] fire stations designated as intersections so we can get those emergency vehicles out,” Baker said.
Blouin also announced the creation of a new email address, traffic@townofpalmbeach.com, for the public to submit questions or comments.
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