Traffic shift at Maitland ramp creates backups along Interstate 4

MAITLAND, Fla. - The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) said that an on-ramp shift was to blame for the traffic backup on Interstate 4 during Wednesday morning's rush. It could take drivers awhile to get used to the change.

Cars and trucks were backed up for miles on eastbound I-4, with snarled traffic and long lines for the exit ramps to Maitland Boulevard and State Road 436. The SkyFOX Drone showed cars bumper-to-bumper even hours later. FOX 35 traffic anchor Kristin Giannis let viewers know about it on Wednesday morning.

“The height of rush hour,” Giannis said, “I-4 eastbound is usually not the problem spot. It's usually the westbound side because everyone is trying to leave Seminole County and get to downtown Orlando, but this morning it was on the opposite side, I-4 eastbound.”

FDOT's Dave Parks said it was all because of a new exit ramp at Maitland Blvd.

“We had a traffic shift last night that relocates the exit point of traffic from eastbound I-4 to westbound Maitland Blvd,” Parks said.

Now, the old westbound ramp to Maitland Blvd. is closed. To go either east or west on Maitland Boulevard, you exit sooner on the same ramp, which splits to east and westbound lanes further up. A lot of drivers missed this and piled onto the next ramp at State Road 436 to turn around.

“A lot more traffic than that ramp could handle, this morning,” Parks said.

The next change for the area comes this weekend as crews are set to temporarily close the eastbound ramp to Maitland Boulevard.