{"id":236693,"date":"2026-04-18T08:25:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T08:25:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/236693\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T08:25:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T08:25:07","slug":"safety-event-to-address-deadly-crashes-future-of-state-road-710-expansion-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/236693\/","title":{"rendered":"Safety event to address deadly crashes, future of State Road 710 expansion"},"content":{"rendered":"

INDIANTOWN, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 The Martin County Sheriff\u2019s Office<\/a> is hosting an event focused on roadway safety and providing updates on a project to expand a deadly stretch of road.<\/p>\n

The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Family Park in Indiantown. Its purpose is to provide residents with important information about the expansion of State Road 710 while also promoting road safety throughout the community. MCSO will be joined by the Okeechobee County Sheriff\u2019s Office<\/a> and the Florida Department of Transportation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

MCSO says personnel, including members of the West County Division, Lt. Michael McCarthy, and Traffic Commander Lt. Dave Rosko, will be in attendance to speak with community members.<\/p>\n

Residents will have the opportunity to speak with representatives from all participating agencies and gain a clearer understanding of the State Road 710<\/a> project. They will also learn about anticipated construction phases, potential traffic patterns, and how the changes could impact daily commutes.<\/p>\n

Attendees will be given practical safety guidance, including how to safely navigate work zones, why it\u2019s important to slow down in construction areas, and updates on speeding laws and enforcement efforts, MCSO says. Additional information will cover the safe operation of golf carts and e-bikes, with an emphasis on visibility, traffic rules, and sharing the road responsibly with vehicles.<\/p>\n

Residents are also encouraged to attend, ask questions, and voice any concerns about traffic and roadway safety. The event also offers an opportunity to share feedback directly with local law enforcement and transportation officials working in the community.<\/p>\n

State Road 710: A deadly and dangerous road<\/p>\n

In March, CBS12 reported on a crash that blocked and diverted traffic after a semi-truck overturned<\/a>. The incident prompted Treasure Coast officials, including Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek, to push for safety improvements on State Road 710\u2014what some have called a \u201cdeath trap.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

During a meeting with Martin County commissioners, Budensiek spoke about the deadly crashes along the corridor that runs through Indiantown and western Martin County.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a consistent pattern of death on this road,\u201d Budensiek said. \u201cWe need to fix it.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the first two weeks of January, six people were killed<\/a> in crashes along the stretch in Martin County.<\/p>\n

According to a Florida Highway Patrol report, a car carrying three people from Romania was rear-ended at the intersection of State Road 710 and Impact Drive. One person died at the scene, and another later died at a local hospital.<\/p>\n

In a separate crash that same month, a car crossed into oncoming traffic and caused a head-on collision near State Road 710 and Southeast FPL Access Road. That crash killed a 21-year-old man from Tequesta, according to FHP.<\/p>\n

CBS12 has reported that State Road 710 is especially dangerous due to its two-lane design, heavy truck traffic, and frequent risky passing. Officials say speed differences and reckless driving\u2014such as illegal passing and excessive speeding\u2014have contributed to repeated deadly crashes along the corridor. Law enforcement has also noted that drivers traveling below the 60 mph speed limit can contribute to dangerous conditions, as speed differences can lead to risky passing maneuvers and near misses.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s being done?<\/p>\n

The Florida Department of Transportation is planning a major expansion of State Road 710, widening it from two lanes to four in an effort to reduce crashes.<\/p>\n

However, construction is not expected to begin until around mid-2029.<\/p>\n

State Rep. John Snyder (R-Stuart) said he is continuing to push FDOT to move the project forward as quickly\u2014and safely\u2014as possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"INDIANTOWN, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 The Martin County Sheriff\u2019s Office is hosting an event focused on roadway safety and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":236457,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[171,173,172],"class_list":{"0":"post-236693","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-port-st-lucie","8":"tag-port-st-lucie","9":"tag-port-st-lucie-headlines","10":"tag-port-st-lucie-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236693","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=236693"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236693\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/236457"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=236693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=236693"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=236693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}