Sanford’s New Goal: More People, Fewer Cars

Sanford is a growing place—in both population and visitors. Elected officials there are getting creative in the steps they’re taking to encourage more people to come into the heart of downtown, but to leave their cars behind.

Sanford Mayor Jeff Triplett is proud that his city offers the most transportation options of the central Florida cities. You can take the SunRail, a bus, a trolley, a boat, an AmTrack, a plane… You can ride your bike on the new bike and pedestrian trails, or even jump in a golf cart taxi.

“When it comes to transportation we have it from A to Z,” Triplett said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel. “And we’ve got all of this stuff to do here. So the question is: How do we bring people to Sanford in the most effective way possible, but without having to build new parking lots or parking garages. Because those are expensive for the city.”

A $48,000 study is almost completed to figure out how best to design future development. The goal is to connect them to downtown, area neighborhoods and commercial districts in a way that allows people to forego their cars. Parking is already at a premium, so city officials want foot traffic to be the future of downtown Sanford. This strategy will ideally keep pedestrians safer on Sanford’s streets, reducing the percentage of injuries and fatalities, even as the number of people walking grows.

Local business owners are on board too. They say people out walking on a Saturday are more likely to stop in to their shops, restaurants and breweries.

There are even plans for a water taxi to bring people from Volusia County. The study is expected to be released later this month.