JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As Jacksonville continues to grow, roadway construction along Interstate 10 is underway to keep up with all that growth.
While construction crews, traffic cones and heavy equipment are common sights I-10 near the exit to U.S. 301, the good news is that the roadway improvement project is well underway.
The not-so-good news? You’ll have to wait a little bit longer until construction is complete.
According to the Florida Department of Transportation, one of the key goals is to relieve traffic back-ups and congestion along that busy stretch of highway.
“As a lot of people who travel that area often know, there’s a lot of semi-trucks that move through that area,” FDOT spokesman Hampton Ray said. “The project is really designed to improve the overall flow of commerce in the area and prevent some of the back-ups of the trucks onto I-10 itself.”
Construction began on this project in early 2016. Part of the scope of work includes fixing and rebuilding ramps and their connections, demolishing and upgrading the overpass and creating more safe space for people to exit I-10 onto U.S. 301.
With all the growth Jacksonville and its neighboring counties have seen in recent years, this roadway construction project is long overdue.
“This definitely has that need for capacity issues and making sure that people can move through the intersection as safely as possible,” Ray said. “Really, it’s about modernizing that intersection with the volume of trucks you see go through there.”
“When you have a back-up on the main line on Interstate 10, that’s not safe, that’s not good for anyone. We want to make sure it’s as safe as possible by, if there’s a queue getting those folks off to the side of the road, giving them a space to back up as they move through the intersections.”
All told, the project is estimated to cost roughly $65 million.
Work on this traffic improvement project is anticipated to wrap up in fall 2022. But weather and other factors could lead to delays. Once the bridge is demolished, crews will begin working on a replacement.
But while work is underway, drivers can look forward to new ramps, a safer overpass and more space for vehicles to safely access U.S. 301 without causing major back-ups on I-10.