I-4 Construction Orlando Update: Sand Lake Road Ramps Close Overnight Nov. 17-19, New Ramp Shift Friday
FDOT will close ramps at the I-4 and Sand Lake Road interchange on three straight nights, November 17-19, from as early as 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The detours, night by night, and the traffic shift onto the new eastbound entrance ramp planned for Friday morning, November 20.
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If your late-night route runs through the I-4 and Sand Lake Road interchange, plan around it this week. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will close ramps at the interchange on three consecutive nights — Tuesday, November 17 through Thursday, November 19 — with closures beginning as early as 10 p.m. each night and ending by 6 a.m. the following morning, according to FDOT’s project notice on CFLRoads. The work sets up a traffic shift onto the new eastbound I-4 entrance ramp from Sand Lake Road as soon as Friday morning, November 20.
What closes, night by night
Tuesday, November 17 and Wednesday, November 18: the eastbound I-4 exit ramp to Sand Lake Road (State Road 482) and the eastbound I-4 entrance ramp from Sand Lake Road close both nights for barrier wall relocation.
Thursday, November 19: the eastbound I-4 entrance ramp from Sand Lake Road closes again, this time to prepare for the ramp shift. The left-turn lanes from the eastbound I-4 exit ramp to westbound Sand Lake Road also close. And the westbound I-4 exit ramp to Sand Lake Road at Exit 74A closes overnight — although access to Turkey Lake Road from westbound I-4 at Exit 74A remains open, FDOT says.
The detours FDOT has posted
Eastbound I-4 drivers who want Sand Lake Road (Exit 74A) should continue east to Exit 75A for Universal Boulevard, turn right onto southbound Universal Boulevard and proceed to Sand Lake Road. Drivers west of I-4 on Sand Lake Road who want eastbound I-4 should head north on Turkey Lake Road, turn right onto eastbound Hollywood Way, then right onto southbound Universal Boulevard to the eastbound I-4 entrance ramp. Drivers east of I-4 on Sand Lake Road should go north on International Drive, left onto northbound Universal Boulevard, and on to the eastbound entrance ramp.
Westbound I-4 drivers bound for Sand Lake Road on Thursday night take Exit 74A but keep left at the split on the ramp toward Turkey Lake Road, then turn right onto northbound Turkey Lake Road and proceed to Sand Lake Road. FDOT advises all motorists to follow the posted detour signs, and notes that construction schedules can change with weather or other unforeseen circumstances.
Why this interchange, why now
The closures are part of FDOT’s improvement project at the I-4 and Sand Lake Road interchange, which runs from east of S.R. 528 to west of S.R. 435. Friday morning’s shift onto the new eastbound entrance ramp is the visible payoff of this week’s overnight work — if you use that ramp on a morning commute, expect its alignment to feel different from November 20. The interchange sits at the edge of the International Drive corridor, so hotel and attraction traffic shares these ramps with local commuters; if you are planning an I-Drive stay around the closure nights, our guide to where to stay on International Drive maps the districts the detours run through.
For the rest of the week’s road picture, see the Citizen’s Traffic & Roads archive and the full roster of beats on our beats index. If the train is an option for your trip instead, our downtown SunRail and LYMMO guide covers the car-free alternative. Advance construction alerts for this project are available from FDOT at I4Beyond.com/Alerts.
Sources & notes
Key facts in this article were checked against:
- FDOT / CFLRoads — project 444315-1, I-4 at Sand Lake Road Interchange — closure nights and hours, the ramp-by-ramp schedule, all four detour routes, the Turkey Lake Road exception at Exit 74A, and the traffic shift planned for Friday morning, November 20.
- FDOT advises that construction schedules are subject to change due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances; check the project page or FL511 before a late-night trip.
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