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The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District Seven, in coordination with Hillsborough County, is conducting a Project Development & Environment (PD&E) study along Gibsonton Drive from Fern Hill Drive to US 301 in Hillsborough County.

PD&E Study Purpose

The objective of the PD&E study is to assist the FDOT Office of Environmental Management (OEM) in reaching a decision on the location; conceptual design; social and economic, cultural, natural and physical environmental effects of the proposed improvements for the widening of Gibsonton Drive, including stormwater management facilities (SMF) and floodplain compensation (FPC) sites. This study documents the need for the improvements as well as the procedures utilized to develop and evaluate various improvements, including elements such as proposed typical sections, preliminary horizontal alignments, and intersection enhancements.

The PD&E study satisfies all applicable requirements, including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), to qualify for federal-aid funding of subsequent development phases (design, right of way acquisition, and construction). This project was screened through the FDOT’s Efficient Transportation Decision Making (ETDM) process as ETDM Project No. 14493. The ETDM Programming Screen Summary Report was published on August 17, 2022, containing comments from the Environmental Technical Advisory Team (ETAT) on the project’s effects on various natural, physical, and social resources. A Type 2 Categorical Exclusion is the class of action for this PD&E study.

Project Purpose and Need

The purpose of this project is to address future roadway capacity issues as well as improve safety conditions on Gibsonton Road, which is an important east-west connection between I-75 and US 301.

This project is needed to accommodate traffic volumes for the future year (2045) and to accommodate projected traffic flows from the proposed reconstruction of the I-75/Gibsonton Drive interchange. Additionally, this segment experiences high crash rates that are more than six times the statewide average for similar facilities.

Existing Facility and Proposed Improvements

Gibsonton Drive is owned and maintained by Hillsborough County. Within the project area, Gibsonton Drive is currently a four-lane divided facility functionally classified as an arterial roadway with a posted speed limit of 45 mph. The roadway has two 12-foot lanes in each direction, a 22-foot median and turn lanes at many locations along the corridor. There are approximately 4-foot paved shoulders throughout the corridor with no dedicated bicycle lanes. There is a 5-foot sidewalk on both sides of the road with a few gaps in the sidewalk on the south side, west of Kendra Drive. Approximately 230 linear feet of the sidewalk on the south side, east of Kendra Drive, is a wood boardwalk. The existing right of way (ROW) varies along the corridor, but is a minimum of 120 feet.

The proposed improvements include widening the existing four-lane divided urban arterial from Fern Hill Drive to US 301 to a six-lane divided urban arterial with a 22-foot median. There will be two 11-foot and one 12-foot travel lanes with curb and gutter with a 10-foot wide sidewalk in each direction. Horizontal widening alignments were adjusted to minimize right-of-way requirements, impacts and costs.

Up to 30 feet of additional right-of-way is required along the north side of the roadway between Hagadorn Road and US 301 and up to 7 feet of additional right-of-way is needed on the south side of Gibsonton Drive just west of the US 301 intersection. Additional right-of-way is proposed for one off-site stormwater management facility and one off-site floodplain compensation site which are located adjacent to Gibsonton Drive.