Business View Civil and Municipal | February 2021

30 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL FEBRUARY 2021 that there were several things we could do to prepare. For example, high mast lighting at interchanges – we realized that prior to a storm it’s best to lower the lighting like a flagpole, so the weight is at the bottom, because you have a better chance of the pole surviving the wind. Highway signage is inevitably blown down during a storm. So now we’ve painted the exit number on the shoulder, so when you approach and the sign is knocked down you know which exit it is. “And when the power goes out, we work with our utility provider partners to help restore it. And in some cases, we work to clear the debris so they can get to the downed power lines. In the meantime, for traffic signals that have no power, we’ve purchased a significant number of backup generators that we modified, so they can hook up to traffic control cabinets at key intersections to power those signals for efficient traffic flow. As for climate change and sea level rise, we see that most in our urban areas like Miami. And we work with local government partners to be proactive in those locations. “To sum it up, under the leadership of Governor DeSantis, FDOT is being as forward looking as it can be, knowing that we’re going to continue to grow. We consider that some rural areas today may become urbanized or suburbanized and all those people migrating here are expecting transportation solutions. It’s about envisioning the future and how we can efficiently move you where you want to go in the state of Florida.”