I-4 TRAFFIC STALLS, CARS FORCED INTO SINGLE LANE
Traffic is reduced to a standstill on Interstate 4 near Princeton Street in Orlando on Friday in this view looking east from the Colonial Drive onramp. I-4’s westbound traffic in Orlando is being funneled into a single lane as part of the overhaul of the region’s busiest road, and the highway will be reduced to one lane from Princeton to Gore streets for five days. Continued coverage in Local & State on
Interstate 4’s westbound traffic was funneled by construction into a single lane Friday, triggering slow-to-stalled traffic and for part of the day as much as 30 minutes of delay from Fairbanks Avenue to State Road 408.
I-4 westbound will remain limited to one lane until Monday morning as part of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ order use the COVID-19 blow to the region’s activity to speed up the $2.4 billion overhaul of the interstate that is now a year late.
While Central Florida is emerging from the coronavirus sheltering and traffic counts are rebounding, a state transportation official said Friday’s traffic jam was not been as bad as expected.
“We are fortunate to see that in this morning’s rush hour, it seems motorists are utilizing the alternate routes and transportation options, including SunRail, and that traffic backup is not as severe as we had originally envisioned,” said Beth Frady, Tallahassee spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Transportation.
That may have been little comfort to drivers of cars and trucks, inching along the 4 miles from Fairbanks to S.R. 408.
Earlier this week, DOT announced it would block all but one, westbound lane from Princeton Street to the north and Gore Street to the south. Originally scheduled to start Wednesday evening, the lane closure was delayed until Thursday evening.
The agency urged drivers to stay away, and to exit at Lee Road for detours along Orange Blossom Trail and John Young Parkway. Traffic on those major corridors also appeared congested Friday.
DOT expects to reopen all lanes in their permanent configuration Monday morning. But before then, I-4 westbound through Orlando may be closed entirely for periods overnight during the weekend.
Called I-4 Ultimate, the overhaul of 21 miles of I-4 through Orlando and parts of Seminole and Orange County will add toll lanes as the primary measure for reducing congestion along a highway that had handling about 200,000 vehicles daily prior to the pandemic.
Also to take place this weekend and Monday is the opening of several ramps connecting I-4 and State Road 408, according to the Central Florida Expressway Authority, which owns and operates the S.R. 408 toll road.
Those soaring ramps about to open, now amounting to some of Orlando’s most noticeable architectural features, are for exits from eastbound and westbound I-4 to both directions along S.R. 408 and from eastbound S.R. 408 to westbound I-4.