After Road Builder Files For Bankruptcy, FDOT Gets Interchange Project Back On Track

WESLEY CHAPEL, FL — Work on the construction of the diverging diamond interchange project at State Road 56 and Interstate 75 is back on track after being halted over the summer when the state's contracted road builder filed for bankruptcy.

Pasco County commissioners were already exasperated over the length of time the Florida Department of Transportation interchange reconstruction project was taking when D.A.B. Constructors notified the FDOT June 25 that it was defaulting on its contracts for seven $250 million FDOT projects, including the SR 56/I-75 interchange and two other Pasco County projects.

D.A.B. Constructors, based in Citrus County, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy July 1.

According to FDOT spokeswoman Kris Carson, work resumed on the diverging diamond project Sept. 13 after the state awarded a completion contract to Superior Construction Company Southeast LLC.

She said activities during the first few weeks after taking over the contract involved cleanup, surveying and other tasks needed to safely resume construction on the interchange.

The interim maintenance contractor, DBI Construction Consultants, mowed around the two ponds on the south side of State Road 56 and along the slopes in the northeast quadrant adjacent to the northbound Interstate 75 on-ramp and on the interior slopes of the southbound on- and off-ramps.

Construction activities will resume this week with lane closures along State Road 56 from Grand Cypress Drive to Cypress Ridge Boulevard planned from Sunday through Friday Oct. 15 from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Plagued by traffic congestion that had vehicles backed up onto Interstate 75 at peak hours waiting to exit onto the State Road 56 off-ramp, the FDOT proposed reconstructing the interchange at a cost of $33 million using a newly adopted "divergent diamond" design.

In contrast to the old diamond design, the divergent diamond design will cross (diverge) SR 56 traffic to the left side of the road through the interchange, and then cross vehicles back over to the right side of the road on the opposite side of the interchange.

The first divergent diamond project in Florida at Exit 210 off I-75 in Sarasota was lauded as safer and more efficient because it cut down on the contact points between cars traveling in opposite directions and eliminated left turns crossing over traffic.

The FDOT said the divergent diamond design has been shown to alleviate traffic congestion and reduce travel time for drivers. More than 100,000 vehicles pass through the interchange each day, and the numbers continue to grow with continued development along State Road 54.

With the county commission's go-ahead, the FDOT hired D.A.B. Constructors to begin work in early 2019 with a projected completion in April.

However, delays and shortages of construction materials due to the COVID-19 pandemic, along with one of Florida's most active hurricane seasons in history, held up construction.

After County Commissioner Mike Moore complained about the lack of progress on the project, the FDOT sanctioned D.A.B. Constructors for failure to meet construction milestones, and the road builder revised its completion date to October.

D.A.B. Constructors' notice of default and the need to bring on a new construction contractor has now moved the completion date to next summer.

See related stories:

• Nighttime Construction Planned On I-75, I-275, SR 56 Interchange
• SR 56 Right Turn From Southbound I-75 Closed Through August
• Open House Tonight To Give Residents Peek At I-75/SR 56 Redesign