Incidents

Man fatally struck by car on OBT in Orlando, FHP says

ORLANDO, Fla. — There have been more than 200 crashes in the last five years on part of Orange Blossom Trail, where yet another person has died after they were hit Friday morning.

Right now, Orange County leaders are working on plans to try to reduce crashes along one of the county's busiest roads.

Friday morning's crash happened near 39th Street where pieces of OBT's crash-ridden history still litter the road.

At the same intersection, WFTV found remnants of past crashes on the ground, including a grill from a Toyota vehicle and a grill from a Nissan.

People who live and walk in this area say something needs to change.

OBT has six lanes of traffic going north and south, and people who must maneuver across the roadway call it a gamble.

Blanca Santo said she knows that potential danger firsthand. She lost her brother several years ago at OBT and 39th Street, the same intersection she still must cross almost daily.

On Friday morning, WFTV found shoes belonging to a person who was killed along the same stretch of road just this morning.

Troopers said the man was not using a crosswalk or intersection when he tried to cross OBT and was hit by a car.

The driver stopped a few blocks away, with a smashed windshield from the impact.

WFTV found that, over the last five years, there have been 203 crashes on OBT between I-4 and 40th Street. Three of them involved a fatality.

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Even as troopers were investigating Friday morning's fatality, another crash happened steps away.

Protection is the focus for the Florida Department of Transportation right now, as it looks to spend at least $700,000 on pedestrian safety improvements along OBT, adding more crosswalk signals.