Increased traffic in Lake and Sumter counties doesn’t make our community unique. For the last few years, approximately 1,000 people moved to Florida each day, putting a real strain on our regional and state road networks. 

“We’re spending more money on the regional network right now,” says Michael Wood, executive director of Lake-Sumter Metropolitan Planning Organization. 

The congestion on I-4 creates a steady flow of traffic on I-75 and SR 50. Capacity improvements on I-4 that will help ease the burden on these local routes are underway.

“Florida has the best road network in the country, based on roadway condition and congestion management,” Michael says. “That is the result of a state decision to spend state money on roads and keep them in good condition.”

At the county level, new roads are being built to connect new housing developments with regional and state routes.

“We meet two challenges with respect to our roads in the face of exponential population growth: Ensuring capacity improvements to meet demand in a timely fashion and maintaining older roads outside of the expansion area,” says Sumter County Administrator Bradley Arnold. 

The process of new road construction includes some set timeframes and can take more than 10 years from study to completion. Accurate projections and modeling are key steps in the planning process and funding always drives the timeline.

Road impact fees are a major source of funding for new roads. Fees, paid with the building permit, are assessed on every development project based on how much traffic the new building will generate. The road impact fee for a single-family home is $2,700, according to Fred Schneider, Lake County assistant county manager.

“Public-private partnerships and design-build projects are important to get things done,” Arnold states.

One significant partnership in recent road development in Sumter County is The Villages® Companies Regional Road Agreement established in 2018. Through this partnership, The Villages® Companies provides the right-of-way, design and long-term stormwater responsibility, as well as the up-front funding for new roads in the plan.

As part of the agreement, Sumter County reviews road plans and inspects the construction to be sure roads built by the developer meet all standards and specifications agreed to. The county has five years from completion to pay the developer back for the investment at the agreed cost. Some roads in the agreement, like the Bexley Bridge over the turnpike, have a 15-year payback period.

The public-private partnership is also an economic driver for the county. While the developer loans the county interest-free money to build the new roads, the county is collecting road impact fees, fuel tax, property tax and sales tax to repay the loan.

Arnold says they are spending $277 million to build roads that are projected to bring in $10 billion worth of capital investments. In other words, having new roads allows the county to attract more businesses. That’s the economic development connection. The county has already realized $4 billion in capital investments, which means they are likely to exceed their $10 billion projection.

Upgrading Older Roads

Some of the older rural roads in Lake County have no rights-of-way for expansion. The properties along these roads are deeded right to the center line. There is typically no new development on these roads, but development in adjacent areas can fill these roads with traffic beyond their capacity.

“When you have 200 cars a day driving down your road, no one notices,” Fred says. “When 2,000 cars pass your house every day, it gets your attention.”

Many older roads were built with nine-foot lanes when the current standard is 12. Widening a road without a right-of-way means negotiating with numerous landowners – maybe 100 or more – to buy their property. Even if all the property owners agree to sell, the cost of widening a road can quickly exceed the available funding.

In Sumter County, old rural roads compete with new road projects for attention and funding. 

“It can be hard to justify an expenditure that benefits 10 households over one that impacts thousands,” Arnold explains.

Counties can apply for federal grant money to upgrade older roads for up to 50% of the project costs. The county has to provide the remaining funds.

“We have a record budget right now for transportation, but we also have record project costs,” Michael says. “The price of asphalt has gone up 50% since 2021, and project estimates are coming in 1½ to 2 times higher than expected.”

Real-time technology, real benefit

“We can increase capacity on our existing roads by 15-20% by using technology such as smart signals,” Michael says. Smart signals at intersections change the signal timing based on real-time traffic conditions.

Straight talk about roundabouts

Roundabouts present a cost and safety benefit over intersections. Crashes at roundabouts are generally at low speed and involve glancing blows rather than head-on or T-bone impacts. And since there are no signals, there is no electricity cost associated with building and maintaining roundabouts.

Photos: Nicole Hamel, Matthew Gaulin and provided by DD Aerial Photography