After a years-long battle with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), the Town of Indian River Shores has claimed victory: A pedestrian-activated crosswalk will be installed next summer on highway A1A at the southern entrance to the town by the CVS drugstore.

Vice Mayor Bob Auwaerter, who handles transportation matters on the town council, announced FDOT’s favorable decision on the town’s latest request for a crosswalk at last week’s town council meeting.

When a pedestrian pushed a button on a poll next to the crosswalk, flashing lights will warn motorists to stop. “That will be a significant safety improvement,” Auwaerter said.

Auwaerter said construction is slated for completion by late summer 2026. “For them, that’s like lightning speed for a construction project,” Auwaerter said. “And for me, that is really good news.”

The town had not been able to unilaterally install a crosswalk at the spot because A1A is a state road and FDOT is in charge of traffic patterns there.

Indian River Shores had twice previously requested the installation of a crosswalk at the same spot but had been turned down because FDOT had not felt the traffic volume did not warrant it.

Also, FDOT had said previously the town itself apparently did not consider the area particularly dangerous since motor vehicle traffic was allowed to drive by at 45 miles per hour.

To correct that impression, the town last winter lowered the motor vehicle speed limit from 45 mph to 35 mph on the stretch of A1A south of the traffic light at Fred Tuerk Drive.

The town had pointed out that previous traffic studies had been conducted in the summer when traffic is much lighter because the area’s seasonal residents are up north at the time. The latest study was done this past high season and showed traffic sufficient to warrant a pedestrian crosswalk.