Check out a video showing some of the natural resources along the Wekiva River that the Wekiva Parkway will help to protect. The float through also takes you to the State Road 46 bridge, which will be replaced with a greatly enhanced structure as part of Section 6 of the Wekiva Parkway project. To view the video, click here.

The Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority and the Florida Department of Transportation provided an update on the Wekiva Parkway to the Lake County Board of County Commissioners on March 25, 2014. Among the new information were the latest schedules for the various project sections, as well as new concepts for bridges and ponds.

To view the presentation, click here.

To view the latest design concept for where retention ponds may be located on Wekiva Parkway Section 3B, click on the link below. Please be advised that details are preliminary and subject to change as design progresses.

Section 3B Pond Exhibit_March 2014

The summary of the Florida Department of Transportation's recent Wekiva River Bridge Charettes is now available by clicking on the link below. The Department asked local, state and federal environmental officials and advocates, county officials and other key stakeholders to give input on the themes, shapes, colors and textures of the new Wekiva River Bridge planned as part of Wekiva Parkway. The two bridge charettes were held on Dec. 11, 2013 and Jan. 28, 2014. The group's ideas will help refine the Section 6 bridge design - to be shown at an April 2014 public meeting. 

To view the bridge charette summary, click on the link below:

Wekiva River Bridge Charette Summary_March 2014. 

The Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority's consultant, Atkins, has reached 90 percent design plans on Wekiva Parkway Section 2B - the systems interchange. This section is located north of Kelly Park Road between Round Lake Road and Plymouth Sorrento Road. 

Moffatt & Nichol, the firm conducting the final design of the Florida Department of Transportation's Wekiva Parkway Section 3B, has completed the Noise Impact Assessment Re-evaluation Report as part of the design process. Section 3B extends from west of the US 441 and State Road 46 interchange east to Vista View Lane. This section includes a flyover ramp for southbound US 441 traffic heading east on SR 46 toward the parkway.  The report can be reviewed by clicking on the following link:

Section 3B Final Design Noise Impact Reevaluation Report_Feb 2014

The Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority's consultant, DRMP, has reached 30 percent design plans on the northern portion -- or segment 2 -- of Wekiva Parkway Section 2C. Section 2C extends from south of the Orange County-Lake County line to State Road 46 just east of Round Lake Road. Segment 2 focuses on the planned loop interchange at SR 46.

The Florida Department of Transportation's consultant, Moffatt & Nichol, has reached 60 percent design plans for Wekiva Parkway Section 3B. This section includes a new flyover interchange at US 441 and State Road 46, as well as widening and other non-tolled improvements to SR 46 from the interchange to west of Vista View Lane in Mount Dora. 

The Florida Department of Transportation - District Five's consultant,Lochrane Engineering, has reached 30 percent design plans for Wekiva Parkway Section 3A. The project section includes widening and other non-tolled improvements to State Road 46 from west of Vista View Lane to east of Round Lake Road.

(ORLANDO, FL) – More than 170 people attended a community open-house meeting on Nov. 7 for the Expressway Authority's second section of the Wekiva Parkway, to be located north of Kelly Park Road between Round Lake Road and Mt. Plymouth Road (County Road 435). In addition to the many property owners and other interested parties, among those in attendance were Jonathan Till, District Secretary to State Representative Bryan Nelson, Lake County Engineer Fred Schneider, Brian Sanders of Orange County Transportation Planning, Jay Davoll, City of Apopka Engineer and Community Development Director and Town of Eatonville Councilman Alvin Moore.

The meeting was held at the Northwest Orange County Improvement Association (NOCIA) building at 4253 W. Ponkan Road, Apopka, FL 32712. Attendees were able to view maps, drawings and other pertinent information about the latest design plans for these sections, ask questions of project team members and submit their comments. 

The three projects, totaling 5 miles, will feature all electronic tolling and a multi-level, systems interchange northwest of Haas Road-Ondich Road and Plymouth Sorrento Road.  Construction on these projects, estimated at a total of $150 million, is scheduled to begin in 2017 and finish in 2019.

To view public meeting photos, click here.

To view the public meeting documents, click on the link below:

https://www.wekivaparkway.com/pnews.php?d=7&p=1

Check out some of the aesthetics guidelines the Florida Department of Transportation is considering for its project sections in Lake County and Seminole County by clicking on the following link:

FDOT Wekiva Parkway Aesthetics Guidelines_103113

The Florida Department of Transportation's Section 5 design consultant, CDM Smith, has reached 30 percent design plans. Section 5 of the Wekiva Parkway entails the realignment of County Road 46A from north of Arundel Way to State Road 46. To view the latest exhibit for this section click on the following link:

https://www.wekivaparkway.com/project-5.php

The Expressway Authority's Section 2B consultant, Atkins, has submitted 60% design plans.  

The Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority's design consultant, Dewberry (formerly Bowyer Singleton & Associates), has reached 90 percent design plans for Section 1B (429-203) from just north of Ponkan Road to the Kelly Park Road Interchange.

The Expressway Authority has reached 60% complete plans for Wekiva Parkway Section 2A (429-205), which will stretch from the systems interchange east to County Road 435 (Mt. Plymouth Road). You can view the 60% complete plans at the following link:

https://www.oocea.com/TravelersExpressways/Expressways/PlansStudiesFutureExpressways/Current/WekivaParkwayDesign/Section2A.aspx

Consultant URS Corp. on June 20, 2013, kicked off final design on the Florida Department of Transportation's Section 7A (SR 429 from east of the Wekiva River to Orange Boulevard in Seminole County). Final design is expected to finish in 2015.

Governor Scott Kicks Off Wekiva Parkway Project

-Project will create 35,000 Jobs for Florida Families- 

SEMINOLE COUNTY, FL – Governor Rick Scott today joined state and local officials for the Wekiva Parkway kick-off event, marking the partnership to complete the beltway around Central Florida, while protecting Florida’s environment. The project will create an estimated 35,000 jobs.

The $1.5 billion Wekiva Parkway is a collaborative effort between the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority (OOCEA). The 25-mile toll road will make travel easier and more convenient through Lake, Orange and Seminole counties, and will help relieve congestion on US Highway 441 and State Road (SR) 46.

Governor Scott said, “The Wekiva Parkway will create jobs for Florida families while also protecting our natural resources for future generations. Transportation projects like the Wekiva increase mobility and enhance the quality of life for the residents of this region.”

The completion of the beltway will improve travel to the area’s world-renown tourist destinations and other major employment centers. Currently Central Florida’s beltway consists of approximately 87 miles of SR 429 (Daniel Webster Western Beltway), SR 414 (John Land Apopka Expressway) and SR 417 (Central Florida GreeneWay).   

FDOT Secretary Ananth Prasad said, “The Wekiva Parkway will be a true game-changer for the entire Central Florida region. By working together, we are able to make the long-sought vision of completing the beltway around metropolitan Orlando a reality.”

Based on years of input from thousands of citizens, business owners, environmentalists and agency officials, the parkway is specifically designed help to protect the Wekiva River Basin, home to an Outstanding Florida Water. Authorized by the 2004 Wekiva Parkway & Protection Act, parkway development has included conserving more than 3,400 acres of land.

The parkway will include several wildlife bridges, and will be largely elevated to allow animals to move more easily and safely between habitats in the Wekiwa (correct spelling) Springs State Park, Rock Springs Run Reserve, Seminole State Forest and Lower Wekiva River Preserve.

The parkway is also expected to greatly benefit the region’s economy. More than 35,000 Floridians could get jobs related to the parkway’s design and construction over the next eight years. (That estimate uses formulas from the Federal Highway Administration Employment Impacts of Highway Infrastructure Investment - Updated March 2010.)

Expressway Authority Chairman Walter Ketcham said, “It is truly exciting to be moving forward on the Wekiva Parkway, after decades of painstaking planning and support for this critical transportation project. This landmark project will bring the community a much-needed economic boost, and help address the travel needs of Central Florida and the state as a whole.”

The Wekiva Parkway is being developed in sections, with the entire roadway expected to be open to traffic in 2021. FDOT is developing the parkway in Lake and Seminole counties. The department is also making non-tolled improvements to SR 46 and relocating part of County Road 46A out of the Seminole State Forest to improve habitat connectivity. The Expressway Authority is designing and building the portions in Orange County, as well as a small section in Lake County.

The Wekiva Parkway will be the first expressway built in Central Florida featuring all-electronic tolling for the greatest customer convenience and to keep traffic moving. Motorists will need a SUNPass or E-PASS transponder to use the parkway.

For more information on the Wekiva Parkway, please visit the project website at:

https://wekivaparkway.com/

Wekiva Parkway Kickoff Event Video

By a 3-2 vote, the Lake County Board of County Commissioners on May 21, 2013 adopted the Florida Department of Transportation's recommended realignment alternative for CR 46A on Wekiva Parkway Section 5. Known as Alternative 2, the realignment features improvements to the preferred alignment in the Project Development and Environmental (PD&E) Study, which was approved by the Federal Highway Administration in May 2012. The improvements include lowering the CR 46A profile where possible by as much as eight feet to minimize noise and visual impacts to nearby community members; minimizing impacts on the north end of the realignment to the adjacent community's entrance; removing the T-intersection at SR 46 and creating a free-flowing CR 46A connection to SR 46; and, nudging the alignment slightly farther east from the nearest community home.

To view the presentation including the various CR 46A alternatives considered, please click here.