Signs along the Turnpike and Sawgrass Expressway, which are part of a new alert system to stop wrong-way drivers are already saving lives, according to officials.
The signs placed at 15 ramps are part of a pilot program inspired by a father who lost his daughter in a wrong-way crash.
"She had a curfew and she was heading home and the unfortunate thing is she never made it," said Gary Catronio. "How do you replace a loss like that? You can't."
Marisa Catronio, 21, and her best friend Kaitlyn Ferrante, 21, were killed in a wrong-way crash by a drunk driver on the Sawgrass Expressway in 2013.
Ever since then Gary Catronio has made it his mission to stop wrong-way crashes, an effort that led the state of Florida to test a new pilot program on the Sawgrass Expressway and Turnpike meant to stop wrong-way drivers.
"To see them up there, it was, pretty overwhelming," Catronio said.
The signs activate when drivers enter the highway in the wrong direction. If the drivers pass the beacons, a picture is taken and sent to the Florida Highway Patrol.
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A spokesperson for the Florida Turnpike said the signs have already stopped 10 wrong-way vehicles in just six months.
"This system has already contributed to save lives so I think in the near future it's going to be implemented throughout the state," said Trooper Joe Sanchez.
But for Catronio, he said his mission far from over. He's now planning to pitch a new safety device to the state that would work with the wrong-way signs, pods that pop up out of the ground.
It's just another safety net to help prevent a deadly crash and another family from experiencing heartache.
"Knowing that we've saved multiple families from going through a tragedy... it's a great feeling to know that we're saving lives," he said.
A spokesperson for the Turnpike said, while its too early to say whether this program will be expanded, officials are definitely impressed by the results so far.
As far as the woman who caused the deadly crash that killed Catronio's daughter and her best friend, Kayla Mendoza will be sentenced for two counts of DUI manslaughter later this month.
