All interchange ramps and affected area of Clark Road to be closed from 7 p.m. June 1 until 1 p.m. June 2
On June 1, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will begin implementation of the new Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) at the State Road 72/Clark Road interchange with Interstate 75, FDOT has announced.
From 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 1, until 1 p.m. on Sunday, June 2, the final implementation will necessitate the closure of all interchange ramps — and Clark Road itself — between Catamaran Drive and Queensbury Boulevard, a news release explains. Pedestrians and cyclists will be affected as well as motorists, the release points out. The closure will enable crews to place the travel lanes into the final configuration, including lane restriping and the installation of signage and traffic signals, the release notes.
During the closure, I-75 north- and southbound motorists will use the State Road 758/Bee Ridge Road (Exit 207) exit and Honore Avenue to reach Clark Road, the release continues. “Clark Road motorists wishing to continue on Clark Road will use Honore Avenue and Proctor Road to circumvent the interchange area,” the release adds.
Upon its opening on Sunday, June 2, the release continues, drivers will be traveling in the final DDI configuration with signage and pavement markings guiding them through the interchange.
Motorists should follow the posted detour signs or identify alternate routes, the release says. All “drivers should exercise caution through the detour area and anticipate delays,” the release points out.
The FDOT webpage about the project notes that the total construction cost is $52.6 million. The completion of the work had been expected in the middle of this year, that webpage said.
Construction of the project began in mid-October 2021, as The Sarasota News Leader reported. At that time, FDOT staff said it expected the initiative to be completed in late 2023.
The total length of the project area is 0.913 miles, FDOT notes in its Five Year Work Program.
Sacyr Construction, which is based in Madrid, is the contractor handling the work. It has offices in Miami and Lakewood Ranch, a News Leader online search found.
In a fact sheet, FDOT explains that the diverging diamond design “provides a safety benefit because it reduces the number of potential conflict points through the elimination of potential crossing conflicts between vehicles turning left onto the freeway and opposing arterial [road] traffic.”
The first diverging diamond interchange in Sarasota County opened in May 2017, at University Parkway and I-75. Representatives of a consulting firm working with FDOT unveiled the design to the Sarasota and Manatee county commissioners during a joint meeting of the boards on April 16, 2013.
The diverging diamond at University Parkway and I-75 cost $75.4 million, FDOT reported.