Downtown Orlando Project Discussion

[wally2169]

Would anyone who normally posts photos throught these many threads be in a position to go out and snap a bunch of photos of the SR 408 widening?

I am unable to get there and I would love to see where this stands

What I am specifically looking for are photos of the new Holland East and West tollbooth plazas, Lake Underhill Bridge, going west bound towards the stadium, the new Expressway Authority building by the Holland East plaza, etc,.

I would greatly appreciate anyone who can accomplish this

Thanks

[facilities man]

The Maitland Blvd. extension is months AHEAD of schedule. It was supposed to open by early fall of 2009. It will partially open on February 14th, from the 429 to Hiawassee road. Then by early summer it will open the rest of the way from 441 to Hiawassee.

[JRS1]

The Maitland Blvd. extension is months AHEAD of schedule. It was supposed to open by early fall of 2009. It will partially open on February 14th, from the 429 to Hiawassee road. Then by early summer it will open the rest of the way from 441 to Hiawassee.

that's exciting. gotta tell ya, when they finally extended Hiawassee to the Wal Mart at 441 & Piedmont Wekiva Rd., that was huge. it was the piece that connected Apopka to W. Colonial and brought it all together. Now, 429 kind of does that anyway.

[bulldogger]

Runners / Joggers out there, you may be interested in running on a new highway before anyone drives on it...

http://www.trackshack.com/events/individua...llenge-08.shtml

[demon]

Runners / Joggers out there, you may be interested in running on a new highway before anyone drives on it...

http://www.trackshack.com/events/individua...llenge-08.shtml

Where's the fun in that?

[bulldogger]

It'll be a road to run on without trash and other debris from drivers. And runners like running, so this is a little different and may be fun just because it is a variance.

[slapdash09]

i did something similar to this back in the day when they built the 417 lake jessup bridge. it was fun!

[JRS1]

I was thinking it might be a bore, b/c you aren't dodging cars like in Frogger...

[bulldogger]

^ That was fun in high school when I could run a lot faster... until my coach was informed that one of his runners was weaving into traffic and playing chicken with cars.

[cwetteland]

For the last few days WESH has had a story about the Orange County Commish requesting the state to start the reconstruction of I-4 early. They say that the new toll hike on the 408. 417 and 429 will go to pay for the Wekiva Pkwy ... which in turn will free up $2b that the state was budgeting for the pkwy. The county now wants that money for I-4.

I do wonder why we are raising local tolls to pay for something the state was going to pay for. But, if the state money stays local then it makes sense and has a pretty big stimulus effect. Another thing they point out is that construction cost are now 40-50% less than they were a year ago so for the tax payer it makes sense to do it now instead of waiting until costs go back up.

[Boomer136]

For the last few days WESH has had a story about the Orange County Commish requesting the state to start the reconstruction of I-4 early. They say that the new toll hike on the 408. 417 and 429 will go to pay for the Wekiva Pkwy ... which in turn will free up $2b that the state was budgeting for the pkwy. The county now wants that money for I-4.

I do wonder why we are raising local tolls to pay for something the state was going to pay for. But, if the state money stays local then it makes sense and has a pretty big stimulus effect. Another thing they point out is that construction cost are now 40-50% less than they were a year ago so for the tax payer it makes sense to do it now instead of waiting until costs go back up.

Would that include the downtown widening? I thought they had still to do more 'studies' and it wasn't shovel ready.

[cwetteland]

Would that include the downtown widening? I thought they had still to do more 'studies' and it wasn't shovel ready.

Since this wouldn't be "stimulus" money per se, it doesn't have the same rules. It doesn't have to be shovel ready now ... they can pay for studies and land acquisition and just move the whole thing up a number of years.

Edited March 23, 2009 by cwetteland

[bic]

I haven't contributed much to this forum in a while so here are some renderings of the new Maitland Blvd/I-4 interchange, courtesy of Trans4mation.org:

You know things are slow around here when I come out of the woodwork to post stuff like this...

[JRS1]

^^

thanks bic.

I'm confused.

I see 3 general purpose lanes and 2 express lanes with baricade walls in each direction. Is this still the ultimate improvements plan for I-4, or is the rendering just to show what the interchange will look like?

I'm assuming this is the next big project b/c there's activity on the east side of I-4 within the interchange now for a few months.

all I know is that FDOT better have accounted for 4 gen. purpose lanes in each direction with the ultimate improvements regardless if they have express lanes or not, b/c if they haven't , then this is starting to play out like somebody's sick joke.

[cwetteland]

^^

thanks bic.

I'm confused.

I see 3 general purpose lanes and 2 express lanes with baricade walls in each direction. Is this still the ultimate improvements plan for I-4, or is the rendering just to show what the interchange will look like?

I'm assuming this is the next big project b/c there's activity on the east side of I-4 within the interchange now for a few months.

all I know is that FDOT better have accounted for 4 gen. purpose lanes in each direction with the ultimate improvements regardless if they have express lanes or not, b/c if they haven't , then this is starting to play out like somebody's sick joke.

The current work on the NE side of the interchange is related. They are calling it "stabilization." I think there was a pond there and the need to get it ready to support road work.

[codypet]

The current work on the NE side of the interchange is related. They are calling it "stabilization." I think there was a pond there and the need to get it ready to support road work.

It was a sinkhole that stablized....it became a lake of sorts....they're just ensuring it doesn't sink again.

[VistaLakes01]

So according to the photos, Maitland Blvd (429) will also be made into and expressway up to I-4 or 17/92?

So according to the photos, Maitland Blvd (429) will also be made into and expressway up to I-4 or 17/92?

Sorry, I mean SR414, not 429....

[cwetteland]

So according to the photos, Maitland Blvd (429) will also be made into and expressway up to I-4 or 17/92?

Sorry, I mean SR414, not 429....

I don't think they plan to make changes east of I-4. I've always thought that they should have connected Maitland Blvd with Red Bug Road. The two roads line up perfectly and there weren't that many homes in between back in the day.

Edited June 29, 2009 by cwetteland

[VistaLakes01]

I don't think they plan to make changes east of I-4. I've always thought that they should have connected Maitland Blvd with Red Bug Road. The two roads line up perfectly and there weren't that many homes in between back in the day.

From what I understand Maitland Blvd. was supposed to connect to Red Bug, but the neighborhood opposition won out.

[JRS1]

From what I understand Maitland Blvd. was supposed to connect to Red Bug, but the neighborhood opposition won out.

imagine how expensive an easement that would've been...

funny thing is, that Rocky's is moving b/c of eminent domain near the new Red Bug/436 ramps they are designing. 414 would've been a perfect northern E-W expressway if they could've linked it to Red Bug.

[VistaLakes01]

imagine how expensive an easement that would've been...

funny thing is, that Rocky's is moving b/c of eminent domain near the new Red Bug/436 ramps they are designing. 414 would've been a perfect northern E-W expressway if they could've linked it to Red Bug.

One thing Orlando has that most other Florida cities don't is a decent expressway system. It just costs a ton of money in tolls to use it! I think the Turnpike's improvements really incorporate it into the metro area's expressway system. Also, a long time ago, traffic reporters used to often refer to Maitland Blvd. as the "Maitland Expressway."

[bic]

One thing Orlando has that most other Florida cities don't is a decent expressway system. It just costs a ton of money in tolls to use it! I think the Turnpike's improvements really incorporate it into the metro area's expressway system.

I agree that it's a pretty nice expressway system, especially with the recent improvements to the Turnpike and 408 but I'm amazed that I-4 is still only 3-4 lanes in each direction through much of central Orlando. For a city with only one Interstate (or free highway) that serve's as city's most important thoroughfare, it's disappointing to return to Orlando after spending so much time in larger cities and sit in bumper-to-bumper traffic on a highway that's 4 lanes wide with so much empty space in the median and on the shoulders of the road.

Now, I'm as big a proponent of mass transit and alternative modes of transportation as anybody but since Orlando can't manage to get a rail line built decade after decade, they might as well widen some of the highways or at least add exclusive car pool lanes to them. Every other big city in the country has highways 5+ lanes wide in each direction with small shoulders, a concrete median, carpool lanes, and sound barrier walls. I don't see why Orlando will spend so many years on improving I-4 to only widen it from 3 lanes to 4 and continue to leave these gigantic grassy medians that could help ease some of the city's traffic woes if developed. I mean, the Turnpike is now wider and more modern through Orlando than I-4 is by the attractions area and the Turnpike only has a handful of exits in town.

[VistaLakes01]

I agree that it's a pretty nice expressway system, especially with the recent improvements to the Turnpike and 408 but I'm amazed that I-4 is still only 3-4 lanes in each direction through much of central Orlando. For a city with only one Interstate (or free highway) that serve's as city's most important thoroughfare, it's disappointing to return to Orlando after spending so much time in larger cities and sit in bumper-to-bumper traffic on a highway that's 4 lanes wide with so much empty space in the median and on the shoulders of the road.

Now, I'm as big a proponent of mass transit and alternative modes of transportation as anybody but since Orlando can't manage to get a rail line built decade after decade, they might as well widen some of the highways or at least add exclusive car pool lanes to them. Every other big city in the country has highways 5+ lanes wide in each direction with small shoulders, a concrete median, carpool lanes, and sound barrier walls. I don't see why Orlando will spend so many years on improving I-4 to only widen it from 3 lanes to 4 and continue to leave these gigantic grassy medians that could help ease some of the city's traffic woes if developed. I mean, the Turnpike is now wider and more modern through Orlando than I-4 is by the attractions area and the Turnpike only has a handful of exits in town.

[/quote

I agree about I-4, isn't the latest plan to have a total of 8 lanes in each direction with two of them being toll lanes? I know they are rebuilding a lot of interchanges to before they start widening the road. It took Atlanta a couple of decades to rebuild it's interstate system, I know it was under construction most of my life. At least they've gotten I-4 widened between Tampa and Orlando and now the Volusia suburbs and north Seminole county.

[steve_o]

I know this is a little off track but has anyone noticed that there are a massive amount of street lights on the new 408 makover? They appear to be every 100' or so. Does anybody know if there is a reason or state code for so many? In my opinion it looks ridiculous and really takes away from the beauty of the new roads. They could have easily done without 1/3 to 1/2 of them. Not to mention this cant possibly help the energy conservation movement that is beginning.

[aent]

I think its because they are lower to the ground? I also noticed on some parts of it they are now on both sides of the road as well, making it even more street lights... I prefer dark highways, less glare and all of the objects you really need to be concerned about are lit up (other cars and reflectors on the road)