The daily morning traffic jam on the Veterans Expressway near Tampa International Airport has thousands of drivers wondering why they’re paying tolls only to sit in stop-and-go traffic.

That’s going to change with a new FDOT project designed to eliminate the snarl that occurs every morning south of Hillsborough Avenue.

FDOT’s design will eliminate the merge lane located on the southbound Veterans Expressway at the ramp at the Courtney Campbell Causeway. Right now, traffic is squeezed from five to four lanes. An additional lane will be added, providing for five lanes down to the airport entrances.

Construction is scheduled to begin in April, and is expected to take four months, depending on the weather. FDOT says lane closures and detours for construction will only take place overnight, and the work schedule will be modified as needed to accommodate traffic to and from special events.

While the primary focus of the $1.9 million project is to relieve congestion during the morning rush, it also will pave the way for dynamic tolling. That means, rates will vary depending on the time of day, and traffic volume.

There’s no timeline on when dynamic tolling is expected on the Veterans Expressway, however, FDOT previously said that it would not implement the measures until the problems with congestion were taken care of.

The project fact sheet for the upcoming construction project is available here.

What’s your Road Rant? Email Meredyth Censullo here.
Or you can contact Meredyth on Facebook.