Drivers between St. Lucie and Indian River counties have a new point of entry closer to each other “one year early,” according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
A new Interstate 95 interchange along Oslo Road, once expected to open next fall, opened Monday at mile marker 143, FDOT announced. The work, which began August 2023, cost $95.78 million between FDOT and Indian River County.
The new exit connects drivers to Oslo Road/State Road 606 via 58th Avenue with promises to “reduce pressure between homeowners, freight trucks and emergency personnel,” the release said. It connects to more remote homes and farmland in northern St. Lucie nearly 5.5 miles south at Indrio Road (Exit 138); and businesses 3.9 miles north at State Road 60 (Exit 147).
More access, helped by a bridge over I-95, allows for new lighting, accessible ramps and better guidance for pedestrians and bicyclists there. It also provides needed arterial access for S.R. 606, a “designated truck route” identified in Indian River County’s Comprehensive Mobility Plan, said FDOT.
The state and county hastened the road’s construction through a “Voluntary Acceleration” program under FDOT, the release said. Records add that this project, like others statewide, review applications from contractors to expedite building if thought feasible by the state.
The interchange opened to fanfare including an appearance by Gov. Ron DeSantis in a morning ceremony Monday.
“The emergency response time will be reduced by up to 56 percent,” said DeSantis. “That will ultimately save some lives because time is of the essence in some of these situations.”
New emergency and evacuation access at the interchange marks another recognition of the damage from Hurricane Milton that DeSantis surveyed in the rural county two years prior. “These improvements will also provide additional capacity and another critical route for emergency response and evacuation when severe weather threatens,” he said at the ceremony.
“By improving access to I-95,” said FDOT Secretary Jared W. Perdue, P.E., “we are delivering infrastructure that will enhance daily travel, support economic activity, and provide greater resiliency for Southeast Florida for years to come.”
Additionally, the Florida Department of Transportation acquired a right-of-way near the interchange to create a gopher tortoise habitat, DeSantis said. The habitat will serve as the only relocation site of its kind in southeast Florida.
“It’s possible to do the projects we need to get done while also supporting environmental stewardship,” DeSantis said.
Delays in the project pushed the Oslo Road interchange’s projected completion from next spring to next fall after it required road closures in April, FDOT records show.
Staff writer Nick Samuel contributed to this report.