After years of detours and construction work, the Selmon Expressway connector to Interstate 4 is finally open.
The roadway designed to alleviate truck traffic through Ybor City was three years in the making and even more in the discussion and design process.
The north-southbound lanes connect Interstate 4 with the Selmon Expressway west of 31st Street in Tampa. The elevated roadway, about 80 feet high, will link the two major east-west corridors and significantly improve traffic.
According to Bay News 9 Traffic Expert Chuck Henson, the new roadway really is just a series of bridges and ramps that links the two major roadways.
"The key is that all of the heavy traffic that used to be on 21st Street and 22nd Street through Ybor will now be on this," Henson said.
Because the road is so new , don't look for it on GPS or mapping systems. That process will take about another three months, according to Henson.
Transportation officials are reminding drivers that the new connector is a toll road, and drivers without a SunPass system will receive a bill in the mail.
Also, officials said work remains on side streets, cross streets and landscaping associated with the project.