At a recent virtual public hearing, the Florida Department of Transportation’s District Five presented plans to widen State Road 535 (Vineland Road), from U.S. Highway 192 to just north of World Center Drive in Orange County.
The virtual public hearing, along with an in-person hearing on June 20, was the final phase of an industry Project Development and Environmental (PD&E) study and is part of a process started by the District after a Corridor Study began in 2017. Public comments were accepted by the District at both hearings and will be incorporated into the study documentation.
The draft PD&E study proposes to expand the current four-lane road to six travel lanes, with a 14-foot multiuse path, for pedestrians and bicycles, on the west side of the road, and a similar 12-foot path on the east side.
While the additional lanes are necessary for current and future traffic load, improvements to four intersections for safety are one of the main focuses of the project. The four intersections are Poinciana Boulevard, Polynesian Isle Boulevard, International Drive, and World Center Drive. These intersections are on FDOT’s High Crash List for the state. The entire section of SR 535 in the PD&E study exceeds the Statewide Average Crash Rate.
Improvements to the Poinciana Boulevard intersection include an Eastbound Triple Left Signal intersection onto SR 535. At Polynesian Isle, a “Partial Median U-Turn” intersection will displace north and south left turns. International Drive will have an East Partial Displaced Left Turn intersection, and World Center Drive will be configured to a North and South Partial Displaced Left Turn intersection.
At the conclusion of the public comment period for the PD&E Study after July 1, the project will shift to the design phase, which is funded for the latter half of 2025. Right of Way land acquisition and construction phases of this project have not yet been funded.
To view the public hearing presentation and full project details, including drawings of the proposed intersection improvements, see https://bit.ly/3VuQLK2. Comments can also be submitted via this website through Monday, July 1, 2024.
