Best Foot Forward: Orange County Sheriff's Office cracks down on crosswalk violations

According to its website, Best Foot Forward was created to reverse the conflict between pedestrians and drivers by focusing on one specific behavior change – getting more drivers to yield for pedestrians at marked crosswalks as Florida law requires.

More than a campaign, Best Foot Forward is a behavior change-based program designed to improve road safety through consistent and persistent education, high-visibility crosswalk enforcement and low-cost engineering at marked crosswalks near elementary schools and LYNX bus stops, in urban areas and cross-sections of low and high-speed roads.

So, how does Best Foot Forward do that?

The Best Foot Forward campaign targets both pedestrians and drivers. For pedestrians, the focus is on working adults, the elderly and children. Working adults are walking to bus stops and crossing busy streets to travel to work. As for the elderly and children, they are vulnerable because they have difficulty estimating the speed and distance of oncoming cars, especially at night.

Best Foot Forward works with local public and private schools, assisted living facilities, businesses, homeowners’ associations, clubs and LYNX to educate the targeted groups. At outreach presentations and events, local law enforcement and safety advocates can speak to seniors, working adults and children about special considerations when walking.

To target drivers, law enforcement will stop drivers who fail to yield for pedestrians at crosswalks.  Media events are coordinated to film enforcement operations to promote a broader awareness, and public officials often attend enforcement operations as well.  Communication tools such as social media, videos, public service announcements, speaking engagements and community events aim to keep pedestrian safety top of mind for Central Floridians.

BFF on Apopka-Vineland