OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Joe Viola has a long daily commute, driving on Interstate 4 from Auburndale in Polk County to the area just south of UCF. The most painful area? ChampionsGate.

  • Viewer's slowest part of commute comes at I-4 at ChampionsGate
  • He wants to know if there are plans to do anything about bottleneck
  • FDOT says it's working with Osceola County on a 3-tiered plan

"It’s over an hour commute to get (from) here to Orlando," Viola said. "Going back, it’s a good hour and a half."

Viola says he's at his wit’s end and just wants something to be done there soon.

"It’s a mess," Viola said. "Every single day, whether it's westbound, eastbound, it really doesn’t matter. God forbid there’s a holiday, then you probably have to leave a day in advance just to go one town over. It’s that bad."

We contacted the Florida Department of Transportation, which said it's working with Osceola County on a three-tiered plan.

First, in the short term: In 2018, FDOT traffic operations worked with Osceola traffic engineers to update signal timing plans in the area. Additional improvements are planned for early spring 2019, where green turn arrows will be added from County Road 532 to the I-4 ramps.

Then, in the midterm: FDOT and Osceola County are conducting a study at the interchange of C.R. 532 and the I-4 ramps that's expected to be completed by the spring. Once that's done, the county and FDOT will look at the possibility of advancing design and construction of interim work. In fiscal year 2022, FDOT is planning a resurfacing project and enhancements to the State Road 429/I-4 interchange that will add lanes on I-4 between C.R. 532 and S.R. 429. This project will also include work to hopefully improve ramps to and from the east on I-4.

Finally, in the long term: Eventually, the "I-4 Beyond the Ultimate" project will provide a "Diverging Diamond Interchange" to replace the existing interchange. Here's a video demonstrating how this is supposed to work.

Also, the "I-4 Beyond the Ultimate" project will add two express lanes in each direction of I-4. This is expected to be an extension of the work currently being done in downtown Orlando. This part of the project is still in the design phase.

For now, Viola will have to continue to mentally prepare himself through ChampionsGate for his daily commute.

"You need to have your wits about you when get on I-4 in general, but especially in that area because... Expect the unexpected."

Thanks for your question, Joe! And if you at home have a traffic issue or problem you want looked at or solved, head to mynews13.com/trafficinbox and fill out the simple form.