Operation BFF: School is out and so are the cops

Orlando Police Department and Orange County Sheriff’s Office ramp up crosswalk violations with Operation Best Foot Forward as Orange County students begin summer break

To keep roads safe for more than 191,000 Orange County children starting summer break, the Orlando Police Department (OPD) and Orange County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) will be out in full force reminding drivers to yield to pedestrians in marked crosswalks during Operation Best Foot Forward on June 11.

Operation Best Foot Forward, part of the Best Foot Forward pedestrian safety initiative, is a crosswalk crackdown to remind drivers to yield to pedestrians in marked crosswalks, as Florida law requires. Undercover officers will wear plain clothes and cross the street at a marked crosswalk, giving motorists enough time to yield. Motorists who fail to yield will be issued a warning or a ticket – costing them $164 and three (3) points on their license.

Studies show that crosswalk enforcement is critical in boosting the number of drivers who yield to pedestrians because vehicle-versus-pedestrian culture flourishes when unchecked. Best Foot Forward uses high visibility enforcement, education and outreach, and engineering improvements to make roads safer for everyone in Orange County.

Fast Facts:

• In 2014, there were 74 pedestrian crashes involving Orange County kids 14 years old and younger.
• 46 crosswalks have been enforced through Operation Best Foot Forward since June 2012.
• OPD and OCSO have issued more than 1,915 tickets and given more than 3,995 warnings through Operation Best Foot Forward.
• Number of drivers who yield to pedestrians has increased from 12 to 48 percent on roads posted 35 mph and lower.
• Number of drivers who yield to pedestrians has increased from 1 to 23 percent on roads posted 40 mph and higher.

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NOTE TO EDITORS AND PRODUCERS: Media is invited to Operation Best Foot Forward and will have the opportunity to speak to drivers, police officers and pedestrians. Times and locations below:

Crosswalk Enforcement Schedule for Thurs., June 11:

About Best Foot Forward & Pedestrian Safety in Metro Orlando

Smart Growth America’s Dangerous by Design Report ranked Metro Orlando as the “Most Dangerous” pedestrian metro of the past decade, where on average two pedestrians are injured every day and one is killed each week. The Best Foot Forward pedestrian safety initiative was launched in June 2012 to reduce pedestrian deaths and injuries in Metro Orlando by getting drivers to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and getting pedestrians to be more careful crossing the street. More than a campaign, this “Triple-E” behavioral change process seeks to create lasting social good through the consistent and persistent application of low-cost engineering, community education, and high-visibility enforcement.

Initiated by Bike/Walk Central Florida under the leadership of former Orange County Mayor Linda Chapin, spearheaded by Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs, the Best Foot Forward coalition includes Orange County Government, Orange County Public Schools, Orlando Health, LYNX, Winter Park Health Foundation, MetroPlan Orlando, the City of Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Winter Garden, Apopka, and towns of Eatonville and Windermere as well as police chiefs throughout Orange County led by Orlando Police Chief John Mina and Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings.

The long term goal is to cut pedestrian injuries in half in ten years. The short term goals are to increase driver yield rates by 60 percent on roads posted 35 mph and higher, and a 10 percent increase on driver yield rates year over year on roads posted 40 mph and higher. To learn more, visit www.iyield4peds.org.