Florida’s first continuous flow intersection coming to Daniels Parkway

GATEWAY, Fla. A dangerous road is about to get an unprecedented makeover.

Florida’s first continuous flow intersection will be built at the point where State Road 82, Daniels Parkway and Gunnery Road come together in east Lee County.

The major difference will be in the way left turns are made from 82 onto Daniels or Gunnery, the Florida Department of Transportation says in a video demonstration. Left-turn crossovers will allow drivers to make left turns before they reach the intersection.

“It’s basically the most efficient intersection we can build,” FDOT spokesman Zac Burch said. “The first few times you go through it may take a learning curve, but overall, it’ll become second nature to those driving through every day.”

It’s part of a $55 million phase of a project that will widen two-lane State Road 82 to four lanes — and six in some places — between Fort Myers and Immokalee. Construction on this phase began last month and is slated to be finished by the end of summer 2019.

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Some who live near the intersection are eager for the changes. Traffic has become progressively worse, according to Verol Clarke, who owns property nearby.

“I used to come here and lay in the road and nothing ran over me,” Clarke said. “Now, you can’t even cross the road if the traffic is stopped.”

Caroline Santana, another nearby resident, isn’t entirely sold on the new type of intersection but is willing to give it a chance.

MORE: State Road 82 improvements move forward

“I mean, it’ll probably get annoying, but if it’s for the best of the people, then it’s OK,” she said.

Burch is much more enthusiastic.

“It’s exciting because we really believe it’s going to make a huge difference at this intersection,” he said.