Work continues at the Interstate 4 (I-4) and Sand Lake Road (State Road (S.R.) 482) interchange improvement project. Recently, crews reached a major milestone with the placement of beams for two new bridges over Sand Lake Road along I-4 in late August and early September.

Crews worked overnight at the interchange, intermittently closing Sand Lake Road to local traffic during the operation to give crews the space they needed to work safely and efficiently on these new bridges.

Beginning around midnight each night of the operation, two or three 75-ton beams arrived on trucks, and the bridge crew immediately began to prepare the beams for placement. Two large cranes — one at each end of the beam — were used to lift each beam above the bridge end bents. Crews then ensured the correct positioning, and the crane operators lowered the beam into place. Crews verified the placement, secured the beams, and then gave the signal for the cranes to release them.

This process was repeated a total of 26 times over several dates during a three-week period. The beams were set on two spans of two different bridges over Sand Lake Road. One of the new bridges over Sand Lake Road is part of a new loop ramp that will connect westbound Sand Lake Road and westbound I-4 with Turkey Lake Road, while the other will accommodate the expansion of I-4 Express on westbound I-4.

FDOT videographers captured one night of beam placement and the footage shows crews working to set three beams throughout the night. This time-lapse video, which you can access by clicking the thumbnail above, shows the beam-setting process and demonstrates how safely and efficiently crews set these beams.

Work on the project is estimated to reach completion in 2027. For more information on improvements at I-4 and Sand Lake Road, visit i4beyond.com/SandLake.

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