Its no secret that the Duval County coastal communities are rich havens for bicyclists and pedestrians, and that has Beaches governments trying to make the areas safer.

Atlantic Beach Police Chief Michael Classey last week began instituting new pedestrian and bicycle safety programs. Meanwhile, Jacksonville Beach officials are preparing to add more signs and street markings to guide bicyclists and pedestrians safely through the heart of the business district.

Whether its the driver of a vehicle, a pedestrian or a bike rider, somebody broke a law which resulted in the accident, Classey said Thursday.

In his six-step plan, Classey said he will beef up education efforts, police officer training, traffic control signs, enforcement of traffic laws and traffic control maintenance and reviews.

Classey based his programs objectives on accident data for the Beaches municipalities and other area cities of comparable size.

In Duval County, Atlantic Beach had the fewest traffic crashes with 719 from 2009 to 2011, according to Classeys report. Of those accidents, 31 involved bicycles and 13 involved pedestrians, which ranked higher than St. Augustine, the report said. Jacksonville Beach had the most accidents involving bicycles with 59.

The report comes after two people were killed, one a bicyclist and another a pedestrian, during that time span in Atlantic Beach. Jacksonville Beach had eight fatalities involving either a bicyclist (five) or pedestrian (three) over that same period. Neptune Beach police do not track fatalities.

Classey said the program for safety enhancement is just beginning to be formulated.

With the beach community and beach environment, we have a lot of folks on foot and a lot folks on bikes, and we want to provide the safest atmosphere possible, Classey said.

In Jacksonville Beach, officials are proposing to add 12 new signs in the area of First Street North advising bikes and vehicles to share the road. Two road markings advising bicyclists to keep to the side of the road will also be added by the end of the summer in areas where the speed limit was already lowered to 15 mph.

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