FDOT: Main Street expansion cost rises to about $100 million; south segment set for Sept. 2026

Florida Department of Transportation officials told a community meeting that the two-mile Main Street expansion in Jacksonville has grown from an initial estimate of about $50 million to roughly $100 million, and that the south segment from New Berlin Road to Airport Center Drive is scheduled for construction in September 2026 and is "fully funded," FDOT Planning representative Jim Knight said.

The project matters to residents and businesses along Main Street because it aims to add capacity and improve intersections on a route several speakers said is seeing worsening congestion. The meeting brought FDOT project staff together with city public-works representatives and local council members to review costs, timelines and remaining funding gaps.

"As we've worked through, we've seen dramatic price increases. The project cost has ballooned to around $100,000,000 for the 2 miles," Jim Knight said during the Oct. 27 meeting. He added that the portion from New Berlin to Airport Center Drive has a total project cost of about $50 million and is "fully funded." Knight said that letting for that segment is on schedule for…