Florida Construction News staff writer
Florida’s $20-billion program to widen the 320-mile Turnpike Mainline is now 55 per cent complete, with work planned or underway from South Florida through Central Florida to Interstate 75 in Wildwood.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is expanding sections of the Turnpike to six or more lanes. Once the program is complete, the projects are expected to add more than 965 lane miles of capacity.
FDOT said it has completed several major sections, including the widening from State Road 50 in Clermont to Hancock Road in Minneola, which opened in June 2026. In Miami-Dade County, widening from the Dolphin Expressway (State Road 836) to N.W. 106th Street was completed in February 2024, while the next section from N.W. 106th Street to Interstate 75 recently opened to traffic.
The program includes projects across Central and South Florida. Current work includes widening the Turnpike in Palm Beach County and Lake County, while additional sections are in design and right-of-way acquisition.
A separate project in Osceola County will widen a 1.5-mile section between U.S. 192 and Partin Settlement Road from four lanes to eight. The project also includes new interchange ramps, drainage improvements, stormwater ponds and safety upgrades. Construction is planned to begin in early 2028.
FDOT is also spending nearly $8.5 million on improvements at six Turnpike service plazas, including updated restaurant, retail and customer-service areas. Vendors being introduced or refreshed include Jimmy John’s, Zaxby’s, Vending Oasis and Villa Pizza.
Another $53.8 million is being allocated to expand and improve truck parking at the Turkey Lake and Ocoee service plazas. The work will add and improve nearly 150 parking spaces for commercial vehicles.
The Turnpike widening program is part of a broader effort by Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise to increase capacity and upgrade the state’s toll-road system. Current Turnpike planning documents show additional widening, interchange and capacity projects scheduled across the system.
For more information, visit www.FloridasTurnpike.com.
