Central Florida Expressway Authority OKs $4B For Expansions, Upgrades
Construction on SR 516 marks one of many projects that CFX plans to move forward.
Photo courtesy of CFX
With a relentless increase in population and traffic in the region, the Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX) has approved a $4.2-billion, five-year construction work plan—the largest in the agency's history.
The CFX board unanimously adopted the 2026-2030 Five-Year Work Plan on June 12 in an ambitious strategy to expand and enhance the agency’s regional transportation network connecting Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties, according to a CFX press release. The plan includes four new expressway corridors, continued investments in existing roads and adoption of technology to increase safety, incident response and aiding predictive highway maintenance.
The plan’s three largest categories include $2.95 billion in expansion projects, $410 million in system improvements and $338 million in interchange projects.
"It took us more than 50 years to get to 125 miles for our centerline system," says Michelle Maikisch, CFX's executive director. "Now we have more than 55 miles in some stage of development, with around 20 miles in active [and pending] construction."
The plan includes construction of four new corridors: the State Route 516 Lake/Orange Expressway, the SR 538 Poinciana Parkway Extension, the SR 534 Phases I, II and III, and the SR 414 Expressway Extension. Maikisch says officials hope to break ground next year on the Poinciana Parkway extension, which will connect to other work handled by the Florida Dept. of Transportation.
The SR 534 program will add 15 miles and cost about $2.1 billion, she adds. It will connect east from the Orlando airport to serve major residential developments. One section, to be procured under design-build, is under design with hopes of going out to bid next year, she says.
Maikisch notes that the region, currently at 4.5 million residents, expects to see 6 million by 2030.
CFX and FDOT partnered on construction of the 25-mile $1.6-billion Wekiva Parkway (SR 429) that connects to Interstate 4 and S.R. 417, completing the beltway around Central Florida. That project completed last year, but "we’re already planning capacity improvements to Wekiva," she notes. "We typically plan those capacity improvements for 20 years out. Now we're having to do them in five or six years."
The construction will also incorporate wildlife corridors, trail connectivity and other ways to mitigate environmental impacts and enhance the community, she says.
Tech and Traffic
CFX last year launched a $13.6-million pilot project as part of the first segment of the three-segment, $650-million State Road 516 Lake/Orange Expressway to advance dynamic-wireless vehicle charging technology and test its scalability. The agency also made improvements and enhancements last year to wrong-way detection sites located on ramps to and from SR 408, SR 417 and SR 528 last year, according to its website.
Maikisch adds that CFX maintenance staffers have begun using cameras in their maintenance vehicles, taking photos every 30 seconds to capture damage or wear on assets such as guardrails, lane stripes, and deflectors. Moreover, if a guardrail gets hit, an alert is sent to maintenance crews.
CFX also recently launched a Desk Trooper program in partnership with the Florida Highway Patrol. If a motorist has an incident, officials can help them file a report by phone instead of waiting sometimes hours for a state trooper, she says. However, it's been a challenge to allay people's concerns about data privacy, she notes.
