Proposed Maitland I-4 pedestrian bridge

[JFW657]

Anyone post about this already?

Just saw it on the news....

Orlando Sentinel: Maitland pedestrian bridge over I-4 – Icon or bridge to nowhere?

 

I see that it's been in the works for a couple of years now, but apparently it's still alive.

[dcluley98]

That would be cool.  I have a ride up north there that I regularly do as one of my go-to bike routes.  There is a pedestrian bridge over 92/mills/whatever the hell they call it up there that runs beside Maitland Boulevard.  You get spit out into a little neighborhood and the trail cuts through to Sandspur, but then there is no way to get across I-4 to the West, so you have to go down to Kennedy to cross under the interstate. It is a narrow underpass and one of the sketchier parts of the route. I never have had any problems, but would welcome a dedicated overpass over I-4 in that area so I could avoid the Kennedy crossing. Wymore sucks to ride on so I avoid it by going down around Lake Sybellia through a back road.  So the usefulness all depends on how they connect this to Wymore and Sandpur - Sandspur is a great cycling road with bike lanes and a tree canopy. If they make a bike lane along Wymore for the "Few Hundred Yards" then it would work out fine. Personally, I think they should take the next step and put a dedicated lane all the way along Wymore from Kennedy to Sandspur to really make this area better, but then again, they probably don't have the money to do that. 

Either way, it is a net benefit. And it also has the added effect of being a gateway to the city from the north and an iconic symbol of Orlando embracing green transportation. I hope they do it right!

[smileguy]

The Maitland Blvd interchange - when all is said and done - will not have any stoplights and will be more like a interstate/interstate interchange. Without this bridge, that whole road becomes almost unusable for bicycles. 

[WAJAS]

44 minutes ago, smileguy said:

The Maitland Blvd interchange - when all is said and done - will not have any stoplights and will be more like a interstate/interstate interchange. Without this bridge, that whole road becomes almost unusable for bicycles. 

I'm pretty sure Maitland Blvd is basically going to just be an extension of SR 441 once all this construction is done.  The last two lights on the road are Maitland Ave and that one just east of the I-4 Interchange.

 

My only problem with this bridge is that there is not currently any plans to connect it to the trail system, but it serves its purpose as the only pedestrian/bike path across I-4 in the area.

[dcluley98]

59 minutes ago, smileguy said:

The Maitland Blvd interchange - when all is said and done - will not have any stoplights and will be more like a interstate/interstate interchange. Without this bridge, that whole road becomes almost unusable for bicycles. 

Nobody that rides a bike regularly would ever use Maitland Boulevard. It is a dangerous, cager oriented thoroughfare.

There is a connected trail system if they do it right and tie it into Sandspur. 

[smileguy]

It looks like it will connect from Wymore north of Sandspur to Lake Destiny Dr.

[dcluley98]

That is weird compared to the rendering.[ I expected the curve to be opposite as depicted on the artistic view.  They should put the "Orlando" sign on the other concave side!

[codypet]

The problem is you're not driving into Orlando at that point.  You're driving into Winter Park.  That said there is a trail east of there and according to the current bike routes, you travel on Sundspur, south on Wymore, West on Kennedy and North on Lake Destiny.  This bridge eliminates all that.  When all is said and done, the intent is to have a limited access Maitland Blvd.  Expect the two lights along 414 between SR 434 and SR 441 to be eliminated somehow in the next 5 yrs. 

[WAJAS]

On 6/25/2017 at 5:41 PM, codypet said:

The problem is you're not driving into Orlando at that point.  You're driving into Winter Park.  That said there is a trail east of there and according to the current bike routes, you travel on Sundspur, south on Wymore, West on Kennedy and North on Lake Destiny.  This bridge eliminates all that.  When all is said and done, the intent is to have a limited access Maitland Blvd.  Expect the two lights along 414 between SR 434 and SR 441 to be eliminated somehow in the next 5 yrs. 

I'm curious where they are going to find usable land to build an interchange at the Maitland Ave. intersection.  The Jewish Community Center is right up against that corner as well as a few rather expensive houses.  It is also the only major east-west route west of 17-92 and east of I-4 in Maitland.

[smileguy]

3 hours ago, WAJAS98 said:

I'm curious where they are going to find usable land to build an interchange at the Maitland Ave. intersection.  The Jewish Community Center is right up against that corner as well as a few rather expensive houses.  It is also the only major east-west route west of 17-92 and east of I-4 in Maitland.

I wonder if they would consider doing just an overpass without connecting the two roads (with the thought that 17-92 is the major N/S thoroughfare, and people will use that instead. 

In addition to the two signalized intersections, there is also a condo complex close to the Maitland Ave / Maitland Blvd intersection. 

[metal93]

After I-4 Ulimate is over with, Maitland Blvd will remain with just 5 signalized intersections - Maitland Ave, Concourse Pkwy, Magnolia Homes Rd, Eden Park Rd, Bear Lake/Rose Ave. It won't take much to make it into an entirely grade-separated highway. I fear if this is done, then FDOT would be tempted to extend the toll to this portion of 414 from 441 to 17-92, as I do use this road quite a bit, though not as much since construction started. Having said this, 414 is one of the most anti-pedestrian roads in Central FL that isn't a highway, so it's a good candidate to turn into a true highway.

I do hope a proper trail is built along 414 though, that can connect west to Altamonte's Gateway, Lake Lotus Park, and ultimately the Seminole Wekiva Trail and that bike trail segment that dead ends at 441, merging into that proposed "coast to coast" bike trail.

[WAJAS]

On 6/27/2017 at 0:06 AM, smileguy said:

I wonder if they would consider doing just an overpass without connecting the two roads (with the thought that 17-92 is the major N/S thoroughfare, and people will use that instead. 

In addition to the two signalized intersections, there is also a condo complex close to the Maitland Ave / Maitland Blvd intersection. 

I feel like the locals would push for this, but the interchange with 17-92 would have to be rebuilt to handle the additional traffic.  Also, they would need to rebuilt Horatio to 4 lanes from 17-92 to Maitland Ave to support the increased traffic between the roads.