TRINITY, Fla. — Drivers are still waiting for a traffic light at State Road 54 and Mitchell Ranch Road in Trinity, as they continue to raise concerns about crossing and turning at the intersection.
The area, just west of Little Road, has seen significant new development. Last year, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) said a traffic light was planned to help with traffic, but work has not started. Drivers trying to turn onto State Road 54 often face heavy traffic.
Debi Hasson, who works at a medical office on the north side of State Road 54 near Mitchell Ranch Road, said leaving the complex can be difficult.
“This is where I’m sitting for two to three minutes trying to get out in this mess,” Hasson said. “You can’t turn left. You can’t turn right.”
The road curves near the intersection, which can make it difficult for drivers to see oncoming traffic during busy periods. “I have patients that come into the clinic. They say, ‘I cannot believe how hard it is to get out of this complex,’” Hasson said. “It’s crazy.”
On the south side of State Road 54, Mitchell Ranch Road is used by multiple schools and neighborhoods to access the state road. The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) said there have been 129 crashes at the intersection since July 2022. Hasson said she has seen crashes there and believes a traffic light would help drivers on both sides of State Road 54.
“There’s so much going on,” Hasson said. “Traffic is doing nothing but increasing, and they have to do something.”
Hasson said a traffic light would also benefit nearby residents and office workers. “What a break it would be for the residents that live back here in the subdivision, as well as the offices around here,” Hasson said. “It would make such an impact, and it would gear people to slow down knowing there’s a traffic light or a signal.”
FDOT and Pasco County said there is still some back-and-forth between the agencies on the design of the future traffic light and intersection. There is no immediate work beginning, but the light is still planned.