ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – A much anticipated roadway in St. Johns County will open in summer 2018.
The final stretch of State Road 9B connecting Interstate 95 to St. Johns Parkway is on schedule.
With all of the new development in Durbin Creek and Bartram Park, S.R. 9B is expected to alleviate a lot of traffic along Race Track Road and Bartram Park Boulevard.
Cranes and cones placed along Race Track Road are visible reminders of the progress being made to S.R. 9B in St. Johns County.
"A lot of these people that are impatient and running really fast and crowding out everybody will, hopefully, get alleviated," said Tim Dobbs, who lives in the Bartram Park area.
People living in Bartram Park said Monday that they can't wait to have more wiggle room on the road.
"Every morning, it's a crapshoot," said Kathleen Merritt, who lives in Bartram Park. "I don't know how long it's going to take."
The North Florida Transportation Planning Organization reports more than 21,000 vehicles use Bartram Park Boulevard every day.
With new neighborhoods and businesses popping up in Durbin Creek, Dobbs said, "it's probably going to get a whole lot worse."
"(There's) way too much development, not enough road and timing of traffic lights," Merritt said.
Some drivers told News4Jax that they were hoping for more convenience. When the project is complete, they'll have to get off of Race Track Road and use a connector road just to access S.R. 9B.
The Race Track Road connector is about a mile long -- just south of Bartram Park Boulevard.
There will be traffic lights added to each end of the connector.
Convenient or not, drivers in the area said, if S.R. 9B alleviates just a little bit of traffic in the area, it is well worth it.
On Monday, Sky 4 captured work being done on the four bridges over Russell Sampson Road, Durbin Creek Boulevard, Race Track Road and the connector.
The final stretch of S.R. 9B is expected to open next summer.