TRANSPORTATION

Interstate 4 (I-4) is an integral part of Central Florida's transportation system. I-4 carries the greatest number of people and vehicles of any transportation facility in the region and serves many of the area's primary activity centers. When I-4 opened in February 1965, it was designed to serve intrastate and interstate travel by providing a critical link between the east and west coasts of Central Florida. Although this role continues to be a crucial transportation function of I-4, the highway has evolved to one that serves many shorter trips.

Today, the highway serves as the primary link between hotel/motel complexes and tourist attractions such as Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, the International Drive Resort Area and downtown Orlando. In addition, since I-4 is the only southwest to northeast limited access facility that is centrally located between the predominant employment centers and the major suburbs to the northeast, it has become the primary commuting corridor in the Central Florida Metropolitan Area. The original I-4 Systems Access Modification Report (I-4 SAMR), dated April 2000, was completed as the technical justification for approval of new access and modification of existing access to approximately 74 miles of I-4, between CR 532 in Osceola County to west of I-95 in Volusia County. Supported by a 3-tier Multimodal Master Plan (MMMP) and a PD&E study, the I-4 SAMR evaluated several alternatives for the I- 4 corridor and recommended a list of improvements including additional lanes, barrier-separated HOV lanes, construction of auxiliary lanes, replacement of bridge structures, etc.

The document was approved by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) on June 13, 2000 with a subsequent update in 2003, and an update to the Ultimate I-4 section (west of Kirkman Road to east of SR 434) in 2010. There have been several NEPA related actions since the original SAMR submittal and subsequent updates. After completion of the I-4 MMMP, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) elected to move forward with the next phase of the I-4 project development with three PD&E sections:
1. PD&E Section 1 - Environmental Assessment (EA) for I-4 from CR 532 in Osceola County to SR 528 (Beachline Expressway) in Orange County.
2. PD&E Section 2 - Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for I-4 from SR 528 (Beachline Expressway) in Orange County to SR 472 in Volusia County.
3. PD&E Section 3 - EA for I-4 from SR 472 in Volusia County to I-95 in Volusia County. EAs were completed for Sections 1 and 3, while an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was completed for Section 2.

Only a portion of Section 2 (SR 435/Kirkman Road to SR 434) received a Record of Decision (ROD). That portion of Section 2 (SR 435/Kirkman Road to SR 434), known as the I-4 Ultimate Project, moved forward and began construction in February 2015.