Busy Orlando exit to shut down for months

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Expressway Authority has signed off on a plan to shut down a busy Orlando exit for months.

Now, people in the area are bracing for a potential traffic nightmare.

Drivers who use the eastbound State Road 408 ramp to Orange Avenue in Orlando will soon have to change their route. Many of them will get off at the Mills Avenue exit instead, officials said Thursday.

Exiting on Mills Avenue could add a significant amount of driving time when trying to get in and out of downtown. People who spoke to News 6 weren't very happy about it.

"Oh, my God," Erika Hughes said. "That's going to be really painful, I think."

"It seems like it's going on and on and on forever," added Bill Vanderbush.

That's the reaction many people had when News 6 told them that construction was on deck for the Orange Avenue exit on the eastbound side of the State Road 408.

Hughes said she lives near the Dr. Philips Center, where traffic is already an issue. 

"It could be potentially dangerous to what I experienced previously when they were updating exits on 408," Hughes said.

The Central Florida Expressway Authority approved the plan Thursday to shut down the busy exit. It's all in order to continue construction on the I-4 Ultimate project.

"I'm an anxious driver, and it's just one more thing I have to avoid," Madison Brunk said.

Officials said the shutdown could begin anytime from August 2018 to August 2019 and is expected to last for 140 days. While some are dreading that timeline, others are looking forward to the completed projects.

"It's a pain to get down here (and) it's ugly to drive through here," Vanderbush said. "The whole thing is an eyesore. Even if they have to close down exits to speed the project up, I'd be all for that."

Leading up to the closure, authorities will let the public know when changes will start happening. Detour signs will be posted to help move the traffic along.