Central Florida residents recently celebrated the opening of the Boggy Creek Road interchange at State Road 417 and Orlando International Airport's South Access Road, a major highway improvement that will ease congestion around the airport. Designed by Dewberry, a privately held professional services firm, this multi-agency project was led by the Central Florida Expressway Authority in cooperation with the Florida Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, Orange County, and the City of Orlando.
To improve traffic flow, operation, and safety to and from the airport, Dewberry designed a four-level interchange with flyover ramps and an extension of the airport's South Access Road that directly connected State Road 417 to the airport at the existing diamond interchange. The project will improve operations for existing traffic and accommodate increased demand created by terminal and runway expansions currently under construction.
Dewberry surveyed and designed bridges, roadways, retaining walls, and signage. The project featured three post-tensioned precast curved concrete U-beam bridges, designed to create a longer, more aesthetically pleasing structure with reduced anticipated maintenance and construction costs. The project also included a curved steel trapezoidal box girder bridge and over 140,000 square feet of mechanically stabilized earth walls.