The Stretch

Roadwork Continues on The Stretch Northbound Lanes – Weeknights

Northbound U.S. 1 lane shifts

Due to resurfacing and other roadwork, the north lane of U.S. 1 on the 18 Mile Stretch from Mile Marker 109 to 113 will be shifted onto the 10-foot wide evacuation lane from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. Tuesday through Thursday

The work is part of the Florida Department of Transportation’s Jewfish Creek Bridge construction project from Lake Surprise Boulevard, Mile Marker 106 in Key Largo, north to the Miami-Dade/Monroe County line, Mile Marker 113. The schedule is tentative and may change due to bad weather or other factors.

Motorists are encouraged to call 511 or visit www.fl511.com to get real-time traffic and lane closure information.

The Stretch North Bound Traffic Lanes Reopen

The northbound lane of the 18-Mile Stretch connecting Key Largo to the mainland is now open, after being closed around the clock since June 18 for repairs.

After the northbound U.S. 1 closure caused a massive traffic jam for weekend visitors heading home June 21, the state Department of Transportation had mandated the road be opened from 10 a.m. to midnight this past Sunday. But it opened earlier, and is now fully open. “They were way ahead of schedule Sunday morning. This is great news,” says Abby Kelley, a spokeswoman for the project’s construction firm. She says some “loose odds and ends” work still needs to be done, but the lanes should stay open.

While the Stretch was closed northbound, traffic was detoured to Card Sound Road, the only other road leading into and out of the Keys. Tolls on Card Sound were suspended but are now being charged. “There is a bit more work for the contractor to do to smooth out some bumps so the [Stretch] meets our specifications,” said Charles Phinizy, a DOT project manager based in the Keys. “That work is to be accomplished late at night and any traffic can be routed on the shoulder around workers and equipment.

The northbound lanes closed June 18 so Granite Construction can repair an underground road divider that failed along the reconstructed U.S. 1.

Stretch Northbound to be Opened Sunday 10am to Midnight

The state apparently heard the loud rage against the machine — and on Monday, relented to a point.

Following a weekend in which northbound traffic out of the Keys was so backed up that it took hours just to get from Key Largo to Florida City, the Department of Transportation said it would open the northbound lane of U.S. 1 on the 18-Mile Stretch from 10 a.m. to midnight this coming Sunday. Initial plans had it open from noon to midnight. Read more…

Stretch closure snarls Keys traffic for miles & miles & miles oh yea!

With all traffic out of the Keys diverted because of work on the 18-Mile Stretch of U.S. 1, residents and visitors ran into huge traffic jams stretching as far back as mid-Key Largo over the weekend.

On Saturday, traffic backed up on State Road 905 in the afternoon and evening.

On Sunday, the backup was worse, with traffic snarled from just north of mile marker 100 northbound. [that is 6 miles from the split between the stretch and SR 905 to Card Sound]

One resident reported a nearly two-hour delay while driving 7 miles on U.S. 1 in Key Largo around 5 p.m. Sue Sparkes said in a letter to the editor that it took 75 minutes to drive 10 miles on Key Largo.

Although officials promised access for businesses at the Jewfish Creek Bridge, on Friday evening a roadblock prevented vehicles coming from Key Largo to reach the access road to the businesses.

On Monday morning, traffic cameras showing Card Sound Road and U.S. 1 also were out of operation. {that’s odd]

KeysNet staff is gathering information on the traffic situation. Updates will be posted as soon as they are available.

18 Mile Stretch NB Lanes Closed 24/7 Until July 2…Due to Shoddy Work!

Leaving the Florida Keys will be a little more time consuming for the next two weeks due to the continuous closure of the northbound lane of U.S. 1 from Key Largo to Florida City. Beginning Thursday, northbound traffic will be diverted to Card Sound Road, a route that’s about five miles longer and takes about 10 to 15 minutes longer. Tolls will be lifted.

The reason for the closure: the southern portion of the $300 million plus road project to widen the 18-mile stretch, which was completed just a year ago, needs to be repaired, according to Jannette Lazo, spokeswoman with the Florida Department of Transportation. ”There are bumps and cracks on the road,” Lazo said. “The asphalt didn’t meet DOT specifications.”

The repairs are being done from mile marker 106 in Key Largo to the Miami-Dade/Monroe County line at mile marker 113. It will require digging about three feet deep and repairing the base rock and asphalt. The closure will run 24 hours a day, seven days a week until July 2. If the work isn’t completed, the closure will stop for the July 4 holiday weekend and resume July 6 through possibly July 16. Read more…

New Jewfish Creek Bridge Nears Completion

The new Jewfish Creek Bridge “will be across the channel” by late January, a project spokeswoman says. Vehicle traffic should be driving over the span “almost certainly by early summer,” said Patti Jones, information officer for primary contractor Granite Construction. “You can see things changing daily,” Jones said. “We’re much closer than most people realize.

“We’re only a few months away from having the complete roadway [from Key Largo to the C-111 canal] with the median barrier and everything else.” In the coming weeks, barge-mounted cranes will lift the final sections of concrete substructure into place atop the finished pilings and cross beams, 65 feet above the water at Jewfish Creek. Crews then still have to prepare and pour the road decking, which will take several months.

When traffic is moved onto the bridge in late spring or early summer, both northbound and southbound traffic will use the east side of the span. Contractors then will complete work on southbound access ramps to reach Gilbert’s Resort and other Jewfish Creek businesses. Removal of the existing drawbridge is designed to relieve weekend traffic jams caused by periodic bridge openings and eliminate one possible obstacle to hurricane evacuation. The drawbridge also is more than a half-century old, and some parts of the mechanism likely could not be replaced should they break. Read more…