SANFORD, Fla. – Commissioners in Seminole County are making more progress toward paving the way from State Road 417 to the Sanford airport with a brand-new 2-mile connector road.
On Tuesday, $25 million from the 2024 infrastructure sales tax was earmarked for the project.
Earlier this month, both the county commission and Central Florida Expressway Authority Board approved an interlocal agreement that requires the county to make an initial $25 million payment. A second payment of $25 million is also required between October 2027 and September 2028.
[VIDEO BELOW: Drivers discuss traffic issues in area]
When the Board voted last year on a preferred route for the toll road, commissioners said the project is necessary as the county continues to grow.
“Where we find ourselves with economic development, as well as the development of the community itself and our international airport, is if this does not move forward now, it’ll never happen,” Seminole County Commissioner Jay Zembower said. “It would totally be grid-locking this area.”
Drivers in the area of Lake Mary Boulevard near the airport say there’s routine backups.
“Ninety percent of the time that lane is all the way down,” said a woman who works in the area. “Underneath that bridge and everything it’s just so bad. Like, sometimes you sit there for like 10 minutes at that light.”
[FLASHBACK VIDEO: Alligator slows SR-417 near Oviedo]
Route 2A starts near the Lake Jesup toll plaza and heads northeast towards the airport. Homeowners in the area have voiced their concerns about the impact the construction will have where it cuts through neighborhoods.
With the approval, the project now moves into the design and environmental review phase, which officials say will take several years before construction begins.
The Central Florida Expressway Authority says the project will relieve congestion from existing and planned development. Funding it is just one challenge ahead as it moves into the design phase. Construction is anticipated to begin in 2031.