A milestone has been reached in the sprawling I-395/SR 836/I-95 design-build project in the heart of downtown Miami as a new westbound I-395 ramp to southbound I-95 is to open Thursday, Nov. 5, weather permitting – if not, Nov. 11. Drivers heading southbound to I-95 will enter the new ramp about 5 00 feet earlier than they have in the past, guided to their destinations by new overhead signs. The new configuration eliminates the former merger point to improve traffic flow, providing one left lane to the new southbound I-395 ramp. Meanwhile, two center lanes continue to westbound State Road 836, and one right lane heads to northbound I-95. While the Florida Department of Transportation has hailed the ramp opening as a milestone, there must be many more milestones to pass in work that has scrambled traffic for years before the overall job is finished. After some delays earlier in the work, completion now is expected in late 2029. During the summer work began on two significant components. One is a mechanically stabilized earth wall to support the westbound roadway as it transitions from the MacArthur Causeway to the new elevated I-395 Signature Bridge for which the project is best known. The other was a major concrete pour for the new double-decked State Road 836 roadway just west of the Miami River. The $866 million project is a product of a partnership between the Florida Department of Transportation and the Greater Miami Expressway Agency, and contractor, Archer Western – de Moya Group Joint Venture. The project includes the spiderlike Signature Bridge over Northeast Second Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard, an upper deck of traffic built over State Road 836 and the Miami River, and the addition of one lane to the northbound entrance to I-95. The goal is to add capacity, enhance the flow of traffic and safety, and improve access along I-395, State Road 836 and I-95. The post New westbound I-395 ramp to I-95 a project milestone appeared first on Miami Today. ...read more read less