{"id":101123,"date":"2025-12-31T12:26:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T12:26:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/101123\/"},"modified":"2025-12-31T12:26:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T12:26:08","slug":"new-speed-restrictions-on-way-for-boaters-in-fort-lauderdale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/101123\/","title":{"rendered":"New speed restrictions on way for boaters in Fort Lauderdale"},"content":{"rendered":"

Heads up, boaters: New speed restrictions are coming to the Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale.<\/p>\n

The slower speeds \u2014 already approved by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission \u2014 are part of an effort to improve safety in one of South Florida\u2019s most heavily trafficked boating corridors, Fort Lauderdale officials say.<\/p>\n

The new minimum-wake zone covers the Intracoastal between the Oakland Park Boulevard bridge and the Sunrise Boulevard bridge.<\/p>\n

Slow speed is usually considered to be between 5 mph and 9 mph.<\/p>\n

The state expects to change the posted speed limit signs in early February.<\/p>\n

Speeding boaters will be given warnings for a period of 30 days. The new speed will also apply to personal watercraft, commonly known by the brand name Jet Skis.<\/p>\n

Fort Lauderdale has been pushing for the new speed restrictions for months, said Mayor Dean Trantalis.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of the people who live along that area have long complained<\/a> about the speeding boats and Jet Skis in that area,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we can slow down the speed we can improve the safety.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fort Lauderdale\u2019s Marine Advisory Board and the Fort Lauderdale Police Department have expressed strong support for regulating vessel speeds, emphasizing the need to address public safety concerns in this area.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis new zone will have a meaningful impact and create a safer waterway<\/a> for all,\u201d said Police Chief Bill Schultz.<\/p>\n

The new zone connects two idle speed minimum-wake areas near the bridges and overlaps with a seasonal manatee protection zone.<\/p>\n

\"MarineMarine officers with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department patrol the Intracoastal Waterway near Hugh Taylor Birch State Park on Tuesday. (Joe Cavaretta\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n

A 13-year-old girl on a family vacation from New York was killed in August<\/a> while riding a personal watercraft on the Intracoastal Waterway. She and her older sister were on a guided tour. They jumped a wake, lost control and hit a concrete dock.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the first time we\u2019ve seen a fatality on the water,\u201d the mayor said. \u201cBut why should we wait for more accidents to happen before taking the initiative and doing the right thing?\u201d<\/p>\n

Not everyone is going to be happy about the new speed zone, predicts John Fiore, who chairs the Broward County Marine Advisory Committee.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s 47,000 registered boats in this county and this is going to mainly affect people with smaller boats,\u201d Fiore said. \u201cPeople with 60-foot yachts are not opening up their boats and running. It\u2019s the smaller, faster boats that are going to have to slow down and wallow along at 5 miles an hour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fiore questioned the motive behind the new speed zone in that particular section of the Intracoastal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re saying it\u2019s to make it safer,\u201d Fiore said. \u201cBut how many accidents have there been? I think it\u2019s because the people who live there don\u2019t want to hear the noise.\u201d<\/p>\n

The current boating speed in that area is now 25 mph, Fiore said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to increase it to 30,\u201d he said of the county\u2019s marine advisory board. \u201cBoats plane better at that speed and the wake decreases. I think it\u2019s going to piss off a lot of boaters because now they\u2019re going to have to wallow for 2 miles at 5 miles an hour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fort Lauderdale requested the slower speed along that section of the Intracoastal because that\u2019s where the city was getting the most complaints, the mayor said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur goal is to make the waterway enjoyment available to everyone, whether you live on the water or enjoy being on the water,\u201d Trantalis said. \u201cWe have to seek a proper balance. If people want to speed on the water, that\u2019s what the ocean is for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AA boat on the Intracoastal Waterway passes under the Oakland Park Boulevard bridge on Tuesday in Fort Lauderdale. (Joe Cavaretta\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n

Safety tips for operating a water scooter:<\/p>\n

\u2014 Wear a life jacket and helmet.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Know and observe the speed limit.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Stay away from alcohol. It can impair your judgment and slow your reaction time.<\/p>\n

\u2014 To avoid a collision, be aware of other boats and vessels sharing the waterway. Stay to the right when approaching an oncoming vessel.<\/p>\n

Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Heads up, boaters: New speed restrictions are coming to the Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale. The slower speeds…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":101124,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[506,28,249,251,250,114,266,109],"class_list":{"0":"post-101123","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fort-lauderdale","8":"tag-broward-county","9":"tag-florida","10":"tag-fort-lauderdale","11":"tag-fort-lauderdale-headlines","12":"tag-fort-lauderdale-news","13":"tag-latest-headlines","14":"tag-local-news","15":"tag-social"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101123"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101123\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}