Oviedo’s Broadway Street construction: Bound to wrap up this year

The Florida Department of Transportation says the project to widen Broadway Street, also known as both State Road 426 and County Road 419, from near Oviedo High School to east of the historic downtown area will be completed by this fall. 

Construction began in early 2022, on a combined 1.4 miles of Oviedo roads, and two years later the roadwork has totaled $21 million, according to the department. The project took shape more than a decade ago, though, as the city prepared the area, razing buildings that had stood for more than half a century, to make room for the road widening. 

From Pine Avenue to Adeline B. Tinsley Way, the state is widening Broadway to four lanes, with asphalt paving by Masci General Contractor expected to begin this week.

From Feb. 19-23, the contractor company will pave one lane at a time, causing occasional overnight lane closures in each direction of the roadway. This will span from North Pine Avenue and Chippendale Terrace to Adeline B. Tinsley Way. 

Cindi Lane, an FDOT spokesperson, said in an email that the department planned a late-night schedule for paving because traffic is lighter. 

“Nevertheless, motorists should expect delays and should use caution when traveling through a construction work zone,” Lane said. 

The department also listed that Lake Jessup Avenue and Geneva Drive detours are expected to finish on Feb. 29. Reroute maps are provided by the FDOT and available until that time. 

Among improvements as part of the project, a pedestrian crossing signal known as a pedestrian hybrid beacon, or PHB, was placed near Oviedo High School to help students cross safely. 

“This PHB will stop traffic in both directions when activated and has been proven to reduce pedestrian crashes by 55% and reduce serious injury and fatal crashes by 15%,” according to the FDOT. 

Community Impact

The Town House Restaurant Manager Michael Perez said he works five days a week at the restaurant, just north of the Broadway and Central Avenue intersection, has learned substitute roads to take to dodge the construction. Perez said instead of turning onto Broadway, an alternative route is available going southbound through the traffic light on South Central Avenue and turning behind the roadwork.

“That’s my route now, avoiding that road and just going around,” Perez said. “That’s now my daily commute.” He said it used to take him 15-20 minutes to get to work before the construction, and now it is a 25-30-minute drive.

Perez said he’s looking forward to the project coming to an end, as he’s seen a variety of issues and talked with customers about them, too. Elderly customers have complained about sharp lane-changing near Oviedo High School, and confusion about whether right turns at red lights are still allowed where turn lanes have been temporarily removed. He also mentioned a construction truck lost a tire that ended up under his fiancee’s car, an accident he said he reported to the city but received no response about.

Lucinda Lesser, a resident living behind Oviedo High School, said she has had difficulties navigating West Broadway Street due to the roadwork, driving children to Oviedo High School, Lawton Elementary School, and to First Methodist Church of Oviedo.

“We’re on this road a lot,” she said. “It has definitely been impactful and the quality of the road while they’ve been working on it is very poor. I guess it is unavoidable. I’m not trying to complain, and I think it will be great when it is done but it feels like it is taking forever.” 

She has changed her route as well, taking Artesia Street to State Road 434. 

“It is rough on the car, driving over all of the bumps and all the fixes they’ve had to make to keep traffic flowing,” Lesser said. 

She said she leaves half an hour earlier on Thursdays to get her daughter to cheer practice on time with the congestion. It would be convenient for the people in Oviedo if they would do more overnight work, Lesser said. 

“I am doubtful that it will be done by fall,” she said. “I feel like it has been going on a really long time. I am anxious for it to be done, it is time, and they’ve had plenty of time.”