LaBelle residents frustrated as traffic light plans stall at SR-80

LABELLE, Fla. (WINK)—A controversy over what should happen at a growing intersection is holding up the traffic light some people who live nearby want.

WINK News heard from residents at WINK Listens that things need to move faster. But it looks like the only thing moving fast at this intersection for now is traffic.

"The problem is we have so much traffic now," Rebecca said.

The Southwest Florida story is traffic everywhere. Rebecca explained that the traffic keeps growing because there are more apartments and more homes.

The problem intersection is State Road 80 at Martin Luther King in LaBelle. Rebecca described the changes she has seen since moving in.

"Okay, when I moved in there, there was nothing in front of us other than the brewery, okay, now there is a housing complex," she said.

WINK News shot video on the ground and in the air, and there's no doubt that pulling out, making a left turn, or pulling out into this intersection is tough in traffic. 

"But we still get more traffic on a regular basis, and they are building more apartments, more housing, and everything, you know," Rebecca said. "So it's really necessary if they have to take one of the three lights that are in town and bring one out here, anything to help, you know?"

WINK News got on the phone to find out if there's a plan for a light. There is, but WINK uncovered a problem.

"I can't tell you that I have a timeline for it," City Councilman Hugo Vargas said.

Vargas told WINK News the city is working with the Florida Department of Transportation to get a light at the intersection. He explained that traffic on SR-80 has grown substantially since COVID-19, and that hurricanes have also brought a lot of people in.

On FDOT's regional website, WINK News found details on the project to improve this part of SR 80, but the wording is iffy, saying it "may include" several elements, such as raised medians and a new traffic signal. 

The project manager told WINK News that pushback from people in LaBelle on other elements of the project has put the whole project on hold, and the design phase has to start over. He said the light is likely, but since there's no approved plan, there can't be a timeline.

Rebecca said that, as someone who lives right behind that intersection, they need all the help they can get.

"We need a light that we can, you know, safely get out and in without having to worry about getting hit," she said.

City Councilman Vargas is also hopeful the light, if and when it comes, will solve another problem.

"And hopefully it'll also slow down our traffic coming in, because we do have a lot of speeding people 15-20 miles over the limit in city limits," Vargas said.

Vargas told WINK News again this week that the city needs the light and is committed to getting it done. FDOT said there will be a high-level meeting in about a month to talk about starting over, beginning with a new design.