Several people say the stretch of West Colonial Drive between North Tampa Avenue and Pine Hills Road has been under construction forever in their eyes.
FDOT officials say they’re about 76% finished, with goals that include repaving the roadway and adding more safety crossings.
If you’ve driven down West Colonial lately, you’ve probably seen it — people darting across traffic, sometimes without crosswalks. It’s one of the reasons FDOT kicked off this $16.8 million project last spring. Crews are working to improve sidewalks and add what’s called a Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon.
“With the speed limit, which is a little higher — 40 - 45 mph — they provide a safer crosswalk for pedestrians,” said Britney Jones, District 5 Communication Manager for FDOT.
Jones says safety is the top concern, especially after at least 10 pedestrians and bicyclists have been hit along this stretch since 2020. With a new housing complex going up nearby, FDOT hopes to reduce crashes before more people move in.
“There’s a new development in that area, and we wanted to serve,” said Jones. “There’s new developments and those residents and nearby bus stops, as well.”
Construction crews are also updating existing crosswalks and traffic lights.
Raymond Green, an Orlando resident who walks down Colonial about three times a day, says the construction can be frustrating.
“If you don’t check ahead to see where it is, it can be tiresome and a bit hectic,” Green said.
But he also supports the improvements, calling them a “much-needed facelift.”
“If we get storms and a lot of rain, it just makes it brittle, and that’s the need to resurface it,” he said.
Jones says repaving the road will happen toward the end of the project, along with new striping, crosswalks, and left-turn lanes.
The work is expected to be finished sometime in September.