Florida receives $85 million federal grant to widen 20-mile stretch of I-4

ORLANDO, Fla. - Florida will receive $85 million in federal funding to widen a 20-mile stretch of Interstate 4 in Seminole and Volusia counties as part of a nationwide infrastructure investment announced Friday by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The grant, awarded through the department's Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highway Projects, or INFRA, program, will help add one general-purpose lane in each direction between State Road 434 and State Road 472.

Project includes lane additions and roadway upgrades

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In addition to adding capacity, the project includes milling, resurfacing and restriping the interstate, along with upgrades to intelligent transportation systems, fiber infrastructure and drainage.

Transportation officials said the improvements are intended to expand freight capacity along one of Central Florida's busiest highway corridors while reducing congestion and improving travel times for motorists and commercial trucks.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the project is expected to generate long-term economic benefits by relieving a major freight bottleneck, reducing travel delays and lowering vehicle operating costs over the next 20 years.

Part of nationwide infrastructure investment

The Florida project is one of several funded through $426 million in INFRA grants awarded to projects in 12 states. Other grants will support highway, freight and safety improvements in California, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana and other states.

"America's infrastructure is rated a C. Instead of wasting federal dollars on trains to nowhere, President Trump is investing in desperately-needed infrastructure upgrades that will enhance the way people and projects move," U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said in a statement.

"From upgrading decades-old freight infrastructure to building new highways, this Administration is committed to making our supply chains resilient," Duffy said.