Opening of new I-75 bridge over S.R. 70 moved back to Thursday night. Other work continues into mid-2021
During overnight hours Thursday, southbound Interstate 75 traffic will shift to the new southbound bridge over State Road 70. The shift was originally suppose to occur Wednesday night, but the Florida Department of Transportation announced Wednesday afternoon the shift had been delayed a day.
The new bridge is part of a $80.7 million construction project that started in January 2019 and includes converting the existing partial cloverleaf design to a modified diamond interchange design with a single loop in the northwest quadrant.
Interchange improvements include replacement of entrance and exit ramps and adding emergency stopping sites on the exit ramps.
The project, which widens I-75 to eight lanes, stretches 6.75 miles from the south end of the traffic intersection of S.R. 64-Interstate 75 to the northern tip of the University Parkway-I-75 diverging diamond. Completion is forecast for mid-2021.
Improvements along State Road 70 include providing 6.5-foot buffered bike lanes and 5-foot sidewalks with high-emphasis crosswalks.
FDOT has completed I-75 interchange improvements at State Road 64 and University Parkway.
The largest Interstate 75 improvement project in Manatee County is yet to come. FDOT plans to to start rebuilding the U.S. 301-I-75 interchange in Ellenton in early 2021 at a cost of $145 million. The project will take four years to complete.
The project will begin just north of Ellenton Premium Outlets and extend south to the interchange with State Road 64.
That project will widen I-75 and reconstruct the I-75-U.S. 301 interchange from a partial cloverleaf to a tight diamond configuration. The interchange ramp reconfiguration is designed to improve safety on U.S. 301 by eliminating weaving maneuvers by drivers between the existing off and on-ramps.
In addition, new bridges will be constructed over the Manatee River for a northbound exit ramp and a southbound entrance ramp to improve ramp safety and relieve the backups of traffic onto the interstate mainline.
As for the I-75-S.R. 70 interchange, motorists should continue to expect lane closures on I-75 during nighttime/overnight hours from 8:45 p.m. to 6 a.m. (northbound) or 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. (southbound), according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
FDOT advises drivers to exercise caution and be aware of construction vehicles entering and exiting the interstate through the duration of the construction. Variable message signs will be in place to alert drivers that work is underway.
The contractor is Sacyr Construction USA, LLC.
Visit FDOT District One on http://swflroads.com/i75/sr70/ for more information about this project.
This story was originally published October 27, 2020 at 1:15 PM.
