Ongoing traffic fatalities and accidents on Sorrento Road have reignited concerns and conversations about the safety of the main thoroughfare between Pensacola and Perdido and what can be done about it.
Sorrento Road was one of several topics discussed at a town hall that at times got heated.
The meeting was held on June 30 by Escambia County District 1 Commissioner Steve Stroberger, who represents the Southwest Pensacola area.
People who live and work in the area say the road is a problem, from dodging potholes and speeders to frustrated drivers being unable to pass slower drivers on the two-lane road.
They say at night, it’s even worse with no lights and a long stretch of dark highway.
Stroberger said according to Florida-Alabama Transportation Planning Organization, the local intergovernmental transportation policy board for Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, Highway 98 and Sorrento Road are among the most dangerous local roads.
“There’s not a safe spot on the road out there,” Stroberger said.
To improve safety, the commissioner said “the best thing we can do is to slow down.”
Sorrento Road safety concerns
However, many of the several dozen people who attended the town hall at Liberty Church are frustrated more isn’t being done, like widening the road from two lanes to four lanes.
Tempers flared at times, with one audience member interrupting as Stroberger spoke and telling him to “get to the point.”
One speaker urged the commissioner to takes steps to let more people know the speed limit on Sorrento Road is 55 mph, claiming that “most accidents are from people getting impatient trying to get around someone who is going below the speed limit.”
The commissioner agreed the varying speeds from 45 mph to 55 mph were a problem and he is working with traffic safety officials to make it uniform.
He said a resurfacing project is also planned for Sorrento Road that will begin in September and take about a year to complete, and they are filling in potholes as they can.
“I have a small car, and I cannot keep it in balance,” another woman said. “We’ve got potholes, we’ve got bumps when they repair it. When you’re swerving around trying to miss a bump or a hole that’s dangerous, as far as I’m concerned. I find that road very treacherous, especially at night.”
A 60-year-old man was killed after driving into oncoming traffic on Sorrento Road near Bauer Road on June 16.
In 2022, one bicyclist was killed and another seriously injured in a hit-and-run crash on Sorrento Road.
They’re among the latest is a series of fatal and serious accidents over the years, but according to Sheriff Chip Simmons, who also attended the townhall meeting, speeding isn’t the problem with many of these fatal accidents, it’s substance abuse.
He said according to equipment they use to calculate motorists’ average speeds, most people are going under the speed limit on Sorrento Road, and the Florida Highway Patrol reports more accidents on Lillian Highway than Sorrento Road.
“The FHP also told me their concerns with this particular roadway deals with no improved shoulders. If you improve the shoulders, it can go a long way,” Simmons said. “It’s also a very dark roadway. I can tell you that a very long and dark roadway without improved shoulders is very much a challenge.”
Expanding Sorrento Road a far off solution
Much of the conversation centered around expanding Sorrento Road to four lanes, a project that has been discussed for years with no action taken.
Stroberger said the TPO’s plan calls for expanding the road in phases.
He said currently on the TPO top priority list, the “four-laning” of Sorrento Road from Innerarity Point Road to Blue Angel Pkwy. is No. 5 on the list.
At No. 16, is expanding Sorrento Road from Blue Angel Parkway to Fairfield Drive, and at No. 15 is expanding it from Fairfield Drive to South Navy Boulevard.
Stroberger said no money has yet been budgeted for the projects and there’s no start date.
Some people were frustrated with those answers and spoke up before waiting for a county staff member to give them a microphone.
Stroberger and another man exchanged words as the man continued to interject with Stroberger finally adding, “If you don’t have the mic, don’t talk.”
“The problem is money,” Stroberger said. “I think on the long-range planning and priorities there are 370 projects, and they add up in today’s money to about $13 billion. We have less than $500 million.”
People asked what they could do to speed up the process and make expanding Sorrento Road a priority.
“When you say that we don’t have funding for those projects and it’s No. 5 on the list, for those of us who have been residents out here for 30-plus years we’ve been hearing that for a long time, what is it that we can do to help you get that funding because no one who has been a commissioner so far has made it a priority to make Sorrento safe,” one woman said.
Area resident Sava Varazo told the commissioner the county needed to “get creative” and utilize grant writers, bonds and matching funds to find ways to fund it.
Stroberger said he would lobby to fund and prioritize expanding Sorrento Road, and he suggested people contact TPO to let them know if that’s what they want.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Tempers flare as citizens demand solutions for dark, dangerous Sorrento Road
Reporting by Mollye Barrows, Pensacola News Journal / Pensacola News Journal
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