Osceola County kicked off its formal planning for the widening and realignment of Hickory Tree Road with a public meeting on Jan. 29 in St. Cloud.
This first phase in planning is to conduct a Project Development and Environment (PD&E) Study that will focus on possible alternatives, including a “no build” option to leave the road as it is currently configured.
The entire 11.2-mile length of the road, from its beginning at U.S. Highway 192’s intersection with Narcoossee Road to near Harmony, is planned for widening, realignment, and pedestrian/bicycle pathways. The proposed configuration is a four-lane divided roadway with curb and gutter and multi-use pathways on both sides of the road.
County transportation planning staff were on hand at the St. Cloud Community Center for questions by residents. Display boards showing the various alternatives, superimposed on aerial photographs and other information, snaked along one side of the large open space and then back down the center of the room. A looped PowerPoint presentation ran on the other side of the room with ample seating for the well over 50 residents and business owners who attended the first hour.
Hickory Tree Road, used by many in the county as the “back way” or “shortcut” to points west including Brevard County, has been a mostly rural, two-lane road with no shoulders, and a number of challenging curves that can slow traffic to as low as 25 mph in some places. One particular portion of the road that curls around Pearl Lake is being looked at to completely eliminate the curve, however this alignment has significant additional costs associated with the wetlands mitigation needed to construct that alternative.
Improvements to the intersections at both ends of the road, as well as several others along its length, are in the preliminary plan. Traffic signals are proposed for the intersections with Pine Tree Drive and Deer Run Road. Story Road, which intersects Hickory Tree at a sharp angle, will receive a major realignment to enable a traditional “T” intersection to improve safety. Between 2018-22, accidents along Hickory Tree Road resulted in three fatalities.
With recent and planned extensive residential development in several locations along the road, traffic will increase significantly, and the current safety issue will only be amplified without any improvements, according to the County’s presentation.
As with any project at the very beginning phases, funding for planning, Right of Way (ROW) acquisition, and construction have not been allocated. Depending on the alignment alternatives selected, project costs are currently estimated to range from $430 million to $490 million.
The results of this study will be presented to the Board of Osceola County Commissioners in late spring of this year. If the project is approved, construction completion is expected in 2030.
The comment period on the project is currently open and runs through February 12th. For more information and to submit comments online, see https://bit.ly/4aDllrS.
