Final vote to expand Alico Road scheduled for Tuesday

A major expansion is in the works for a busy part of Alico Road.

Crews want to expand Alico to four lanes from Ben Hill Griffin Parkway to Airport Haul Road to cut back the traffic.

Gulf Coast Town Center is usually packed with shoppers and that traffic adds up and funnels down to two lanes, but this new expansion project would help alleviate some of that buildup.

The expansion would also include two new bike lanes, two shared-use paths and signal improvements at the intersection of Alico Rd. and Ben Hill Griffin Pkwy.

There are also plans to improve drainage in the area.

Alico Rd. sees 11,000 average daily trips and drivers say the new plan is necessary to accommodate a growing population.

“That would be good, that would be really good,” said Karen Fitzwater of Fort Myers. “There’s a lot of congestion especially with the college students that come to, and like now we have a lot of seasonals so we have a lot more traffic.”

The project will cost roughly $18 million, and commissioners will give their final vote Tuesday.