OFM_Dept_Transportation_0619_FINAL_DEPT 6 / 24 / 19 4 : 35 PM Page 4 Money collected from the toll will go to paying ULTIMATE I - 4 back the Ultimate I - 4 contractors and to ongoing Although politicians , operations and maintenance of the road . experts and transit advo - Interstate 4 first opened in the 1960s as an 8.2 - cates say the future of mile stretch from west of Orange Blossom Trail to Orlando is based in public Lee Road . But as Orlando became a vacation transportation , Central hotspot and Walt Disney World brought in hordes Florida is still mostly a car - of tourists , the road was quickly expanded . commuting metropolitan There have been many construction improve - area . To support all those ments over the years but none that takes on as much drivers , the Ultimate I - 4 as the current reshaping of the highway . project was born . “ I - 4 was built for a different Orlando than we As the single largest have today , ” Parks says . construction project that the state has undertaken at FUTURE PROJECTS any one time , Ultimate I - 4 Metropolitan planning organizations , which work is an attempt to remake 21 to design the future of transportation for a region , miles of Orlando’s main SUNRAIL are required by the federal government for any throughway into a high - urban area of 50,000 people or more . As head of waythat can accommodate Orlando’s metro planning group , Executive current need and what the Director Gary Huttmann works to create Central FDOT projects demand I’m hoping that we will be able to ? Florida’s transit future . will be in the year 2030 . in November of 2020 pursue a one - Through surveys and market research , the orga - According to the nization has found that residents are hungry for Central Florida Express - penny sales tax for transportation . ” reliable public transit options like bus and rail . But way Authority , as many as financial burdens have stood in the way . — ORLANDO MAYOR BUDDY DYER 200,000 cars a day pass “ It really comes down to having the financial through the downtown resources to have a system that is attractive for people to use that can get them where they need to go in a and potential riders is the train lacks in service . For reasonable amount of time , ” Huttman says . one thing , the SunRail does not run on the week - Beyond strengthening the current public trans - ends . But even during the week , there are stations portation , he says , there are a number of premium that won’t see a train for hours . n transit projects sitting on the shelf just waiting to be “ If you were to go down to Kissimmee to have tatio funded.This includes a rapid - transit bus that would dinner or something like that , and you didn’t catch por travel the length of State Road 50 from the Lake - the 7 o’clock [ northbound ] train , well you’re ransgoing Orange county line out to the University of Central to be waiting for a while for another train to Tcome of Florida’s main campus . through , ” Porter says . ent RENDERING OF THE DOWNTOWN I - 4 The bus would have Wi - Fi and would run at The SunRail is currently funded by the artm higher frequencies than the Lynx fixed - route service Florida Department of Transportation ( FDOT ) Dep in the hopes that it would be a more attractive Orlando I - 4 junction . under an agreement that says Central Florida’s rida option for commuters who maybe don’t ride the The choice of using ultimate in the name for local governments will take over paying for oper - Flo Lynx bus system already . MetroPlan Orlando has this project was intentional . ations in mid - 2021 . Right now there is no plan on the f also looked at doing a similar project on U.S . Route “ There is basically no room to go any wider how each government entity involved is going to o sy 192 in Osceola County from Kissimmee to the than what we’re building today , ” says David Parks , pay for its portion . urte attractions areas . public information officer for Ultimate I - 4 . “ So , “ It’s costing more to operate the system than we co g “ If we could get in the next 20 years one or two that’s where the ‘ ultimate ’ comes from . It’s the max - anticipated , ” says Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer , who erin of those premium transit projects up and running , imum width that you can make I - 4 within the is chairman of the Central Florida Commuter Rail rend that would be an accomplishment , ” Huttmann says . available right - of - way space . ” Commission Governing Board . “ There’s a formula 4 e On the other hand , with the way that tech - The buildout of Interstate 4 began in February that distributes the operational cost when we take rstatit nology is reshaping transportation , planning for 2015 and is supposed to wrap up in 2021 . Although over among the governments and it’s based on track Inte decades into the future is difficult . There’s always the the construction has been halted a number of times miles and boardings at stops and things of that do ; possibility that projects like these will be to deal with safety issues after some highway workers nature . ” rlan toppled by other innovations . were injured and killed , Parks says the project is on The rail commission governing board has hired O of “ Some people say to even think 20 years in the schedule to finish on time . a consultant to figure out the best way to transition City future is too far , ” Huttmann says . “ That we need to Besides widening I - 4 , the construction project the operations of the SunRail to the government the be just doing five - year increments because of the will also add an express lane to the highway , with the entities involved . Dyer says there have been prelim - of y changes and the advancements in technology . ” goal of better managing congestion on the roadway . inary discussions on the best way for the city of rtes But in the meantime , Floridians are still looking “ If you’re willing to pay a few dollars for Orlando and Orange County to fund their portion cou for better solutions , according to MetroPlan Orlando access to those express lanes , the assurance is that of the SunRail and the Lynx bus system . phy Public Information Officer Cynthia Lambert . you’ll be able to travel 50 miles an hour along I - “ I’m hoping that we will be able to in ograNovember “ I think there is a community awareness that 4 , ” Parks says . “ While if you’re not paying the toll , of 2020 pursue a one - penny sales tax for phottrans - we just can’t keep widening roads , ” she says . “ We’re you’re going to be traveling at whatever that cur - portation , ” Dyer says . ail maturing as a region , so we need to look at other rent traffic or that current congestion is allowing As for the SunRail’s next move , he says unRexpan - ways to move people . ” S at that time . ” sion to the airport would be a good next step . ORLANDOFAMILYMAGAZINE.COM july 2019 ORLANDO FAMILY 17