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In case you didn’t know, Florida Ave. is about to get a bit of a makeover in just a few months. (i.e. it’s going from five to three lanes.)
Recreated footage of you trying to figure out how this will work. (Don’t worry – we’re about to get to that.) | Gif via Giphy
We know the redo of an entire road – especially one that’s as hopping as Florida Ave. – can seem pretty daunting. Like when is it happening? Will you need to #PlanAhead your commute time? How will its success be measured? Etc. So in an effort to drive away some of your roadway anxieties (and ours too, tbh), we reached out to the City for the answers.
Here’s the scoop on the project in ~2 min. ⌛
- Construction of the Florida Avenue Road Diet Test between Ariana St. + Lime St. is scheduled to begin this spring, following Detroit Tigers Spring Training + the SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo, and is expected to last six months. Following the completion of construction activities, the test will begin and will last for one year.
- The City Commission will make the final determination on the success of the road diet test based on data + community input.
- The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will collect data at 90+ locations to determine existing traffic counts, travel times + vehicle types before construction starts.
- The City has already fitted devices on 15+ traffic signals that are providing real-time travel speeds + delays in the project area. The data provides information on current traffic conditions that can be compared with post-construction traffic data. This will help determine increases in congestion and diverted traffic.
- Crash data will also be used to determine if traffic safety has improved for bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorists during the test period.
- Noteworthy: FDOT has funded a new transit circulator route between Southgate Plaza + downtown that will allow the Citrus Connection’s Gold Line to run without any stops within the test area.
Click here to learn more about the “why” behind the project.