OCALA, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference Tuesday morning to announce the groundbreaking for an expansion project on Interstate 75 in Central Florida.
During the news conference in Ocala, DeSantis announced he would allocate $541 million to accelerate an expansion project along I-75. The project will create more lanes from Wildwood on State Road 44 to Ocala on State Road 326.
“That is going to make it better for traveling in this direction,” DeSantis said.
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According to DeSantis, this funding will help accelerate the project by approximately 10 years.
“We can’t wait 15 years. We got to get going now. So I’m happy that we’ll be able to do these auxiliary lanes will cover over 31 miles,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis also highlighted the progress of some other major transportation projects under the “Moving Florida Forward” initiative, including the addition of lanes and express lanes to Interstate 4 in Ocala and Interstate 275 in Pinellas County.
DeSantis said the upgrades to I-4 will increase capacity by 40,000 vehicles, helping to ease congestion in the area.
In 2023, the Florida Legislature passed the Moving Florida Forward Infrastructure Initiative. As part of the initiative, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) identified a selection of critical needs on state-owned roadways. The construction on these projects around the state are meant to address congestion, improve safety, ensure the resiliency of our transportation network, and enhance Florida’s supply chain and economic growth, according to FDOT’s website.