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DeBary council backs MetroPlan Orlando push to accelerate I‑4 St. Johns River Bridge improvements
Summary
Council approved Resolution 2025‑04 supporting MetroPlan Orlando and partner transportation authorities’ strategic effort to prioritize improvements at the I‑4 St. Johns River bridge, citing the bridge as a regional bottleneck.
The council unanimously approved Resolution 2025‑04 to support MetroPlan Orlando and regional transportation authorities’ effort to expedite improvements to the Interstate 4 St. Johns River Bridge.
Lede: Carmen Rosamond, city manager, described the bridge work as the region’s most significant bottleneck and urged regional cooperation to pursue either incremental bridge improvements or larger corridor funding.
Nut graf: The resolution directs the city to support MetroPlan Orlando and other transportation authorities in a coordinated regional advocacy effort to accelerate funding and planning for the bridge and I‑4 corridor improvements.
Rosamond said the wider Beyond the Ultimate plan calls for expanding I‑4 to 10 lanes in some segments at an estimated cost of more than $6 billion, but the city is first seeking incremental projects — a smaller funding package that targets the bridge bottleneck. “The purpose of this resolution is to start garnering support from all the municipalities, and the counties and all of us marching forward to try to, see if we can get any improvements on I‑4, whether it's the bridge by itself and and do some incremental improvements, or go after the entire $6 billion,” he said.
Council discussion noted FDOT’s current five‑year plan and that the bridge project is not currently programmed; council members said the resolution is intended to build regional pressure to seek additional funding or reprioritization. Vice Mayor Butland and other council members said recent incidents and backups on I‑4 underscore the need for action.
The motion to approve Resolution 2025‑04 passed on a roll-call vote. Staff said they will seek endorsement from the Volusia‑Flagler TPO and neighboring municipalities.
Ending: The city manager said staff will ask neighboring jurisdictions and the Volusia‑Flagler TPO to support the resolution and pursue funding options for incremental bridge improvement or the larger corridor project.
