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FDOT details SunTrail expansion after 2023 statute change, $200 million one‑time allocation
Summary
Florida Department of Transportation officials told the Senate Committee on Transportation that the state’s SunTrail network has new direction and money following 2023 legislation, and FDOT has programmed most of a $200 million one‑time general‑revenue allocation to advance priority trail projects and planning.
The Florida Department of Transportation told the Senate Committee on Transportation on May 22 that the SunTrail program — the statewide network of paved, multi‑use trails — has new statutory direction and new funding that the department is programming to advance regional priorities.
Assistant planner Weiwei Chen, chief planner for FDOT’s trails program, said the SunTrail program was established in 2015 to develop a statewide system of “high priority paved multi‑use trails,” and that the department coordinates with local and regional partners and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as projects are planned and implemented. Chen said the Greenways and Trails Council designates the state priority network that SunTrail projects flow from.
The committee heard that 2023 legislation (Senate Bill 106) amended the SunTrail statute to add connections to lands designated as the Florida Wildlife Corridor and that the legislation included a one‑time appropriation of $200,000,000 in general revenue for the program. Chen told the committee that FDOT had programmed about $180,000,000 of that one‑time allocation for projects that advance the state’s priority regional trails, including master planning and construction work that connects priority segments and designated trail towns.
FDOT staff described the department’s recent planning and monitoring work. Chen said that since the program began FDOT has completed 42 construction projects that amount to nearly 95 miles of trail across 21 counties. The department also has permanent counters on the network to measure use: 75 counters are already installed and the department is adding another 53. FDOT is collecting voluntary user surveys at pilot locations; as of January the department reported more than 3,500 responses, with 68 percent identifying as pedestrians and 27 percent as bicyclists.
Chen said Florida law now requires FDOT to report SunTrail system features, expenditures and performance measures every three years, beginning June 30, 2026. The department also showed a tentative five‑year work program that lists SunTrail projects and funding, and staff described how the program’s projects are coordinated with the Florida Wildlife Corridor and regional planning decisions.
Committee Chair Collins and other members thanked FDOT for the update and for the program’s outreach work. No committee action or vote was taken on the item; Chen concluded by offering to answer questions.
Why it matters: SunTrail projects use state funds and local partnerships to build bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure that connects communities, supports tourism and recreation, and links conserved lands. The 2023 statutory changes and the one‑time appropriation accelerate planning and construction in several counties and create reporting and performance requirements for FDOT and partners.
