New boating safety zones, signs in Palm Beach Co.
News Release
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Media contact: Katie Purcell, 850-459-6585
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) will
begin installing signs this week marking new boating safety zones
on the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) in Palm Beach County. The new
zones are 300 feet north and south of the following bridges:
Southern Boulevard, Lake Worth Road, Woolbright Road, George Bush
Boulevard, Spanish River Boulevard and Palmetto Park Road.
The new zones require that boats operate at either "slow speed,
minimum wake" or "idle speed, no wake." Slow speed, minimum wake
requires that boats are fully off plane, completely settled in the
water and making little or no wake. Idle speed, no wake requires
that boats operate at the slowest possible speed to maintain
forward movement and control of the vessel. The work will begin
this week, and completion is expected by the end of June.
"It's important to slow down vessel traffic in areas where
public safety is a concern, and this project is aimed at protecting
the safety of the boating public," said Capt. David Schaeffer, of
the FWC's Division of Law Enforcement. "Clearly marked zones
improve operator compliance."
This is the second phase of the project to mark the new zones
created by Florida Administrative Code Rule 68D-24.017. The first
phase of the project marked a zone on the ICW from the Donald Ross
Road Bridge south to the Parker Bridge in North Palm Beach.
The project also includes work to repair or replace existing
signs that have been damaged by storms, deteriorated from age or in
disrepair due to vandalism. In addition, signs that display
incorrect regulatory information will be either removed or
replaced, and some markers will be relocated in and around the
state-adopted boating restricted areas.
For boating regulations, maps and more information, visit MyFWC.com/Boating.
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