I-75 expansion in the Ocala part of the effort to curb Florida traffic

Florida officials say that Interstate 75 in Ocala has part of the worst traffic in the state. But the drivers may see relief in the coming years.

Governor Ron Desantis solved on Tuesday with a project of 541 million US dollars on the ground, which adds more intergovernmental lanes in the region.

“This is obviously a great victory for people,” said Desantis at a press conference at the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing in Ocala.

The project, which is expected to take several years, will expand more than 31 miles I-75 from Wildwood in Sumter County to State Road 326 in Marion County. A lane is added in every direction.

Desantis noticed that the street section “was one of the most commonly used – if not the most commonly used – tourist corridors”, added that the expansion would also help even while evacuation of the hurricane.

Desantis said it was 10 to 15 years before the schedule Moving from Florida Forward Infrastructure Initiative. The initiative was created during the legislative period in 2023 with $ 4 billion in state surpluses.

This money has led to other accelerated projects. Some of them include the addition of express tracks along the I-4 in Polk and Oscola Counties, the improvement of the I-75 exchange on Fruitville Road in Sarasota and the redesign of the Golden Glades I-95 exchange in Miami-Dade County.

Desantis also said on Tuesday that work on an I-75 exchange in Ocala started in Northwest 49th Street. A new location of Buc-EE is to be opened here.

“It is like the Shangri-LA of service stations,” said Desantis about the popular chain and found that the project will have a “great economic influence”.

This story was produced by Wusf as part of her nationwide journalism initiative, which was financed by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.