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Interstate 75 Bridge Project Set To Start In Pasco

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By RICH SHOPES | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 19, 2009

The drive through Pasco County will get bumpier in a couple of weeks on Interstate 75 as the state begins a $32 million repaving and bridge replacement project from State Road 56 to County Road 54.

The 18-month project, set to begin Feb. 1 depending on weather, will include the demolition and construction of two bridges at County Road 54 in Wesley Chapel. That work won't start until early summer.

First up is the repaving, which will happen at night for the most part. Watch for traffic to slow after rush hour and for uneven surfaces, which can damage tires.

The Department of Transportation says crews will repave both sides at the same time.

Gandy Ideas To Get Airing

The agency that runs the Selmon Crosstown Expressway will meet with homeowners and businesses at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Monroe Middle School in South Tampa to unveil a couple of proposals to connect the expressway and the Gandy Bridge.

The idea is to relieve traffic-clogged Gandy Boulevard, but the Tampa-Hillsborough County Expressway Authority has made clear that it won't back the project if most residents and business owners don't support it.

"We'll have some aerial maps and a couple of different concepts and a couple of different ways to work those concepts," authority spokeswoman Sue Chrzan said. "There are no renderings. These are just ideas and we're trying to get some answers on whether to proceed with one or not to proceed."

Closure On Balm Riverview

East Hillsborough motorists will need to avoid a tiny stretch of Balm Riverview Road for the next two days as the county rebuilds the approach to Boyette Road.

Balm Riverview will be closed from 9 a.m. Tuesday through 4p.m. Wednesday between Boyette and Lapetite Way, a quarter-mile north.

The detour will be from Boyette to U.S. 301 to Park Drive/McMullen Loop.

End Is Near For Master Plan

The region's transportation authority, known as TBARTA, says it's nearing the end of its yearlong effort to produce a master transportation plan for the Bay area.

Executive director Bob Clifford said a news conference unveiling a preliminary version of the plan might be announced in a few weeks, with authority board members getting a look at the plan during their February meeting.

The members likely won't vote on the plan until at least March. The authority is pushing to finish ahead of a July 1 deadline.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio is set to brief members Friday on a plan to run trains from the University of South Florida to downtown and the airport.

Show Me The Money

Speaking of TBARTA, Robert Bose of Tampa recently asked why the DOT would pay an outside consultant $11 million to produce TBARTA's master plan when the authority has access to scores of Bay area planners and engineers.

Clifford's response: "Similar to private and public sector efforts, the hiring of consultants provides a temporary resource (no need to hire permanent dedicated staff) and specific expertise and skills that we do not have locally."

Got a traffic gripe? Reporter Rich Shopes can be reached at (813) 259-7633 or at rshopes@tampatrib.com.

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