The city of Oviedo is moving forward with a safety project along West Mitchell Hammock Road, with construction set to begin Wednesday.

The work will span from just east of State Road 426 to just west of South Lake Jessup Avenue. The project stems from a 2018 study that recommended improvements to safety and access management along the corridor — including a raised median, a new sidewalk along the north side of the road and better access management.

For residents like Sherry Hogan, the changes can’t come soon enough.

“It gets pretty crazy. It gets pretty busy, especially right in this area,” Hogan said. “We usually have to walk on the grass if we go to Culver’s, so now we can use the sidewalk and that’ll be great.”

Mayor Megan Sladek echoed that sentiment, calling the stretch one of the city’s most pressing traffic concerns.

“Of all the places people get annoyed with traffic, Mitchell Hammock has got to be the number one chokepoint there,” Sladek said. “It’s the busiest spot in Oviedo.”

During the conceptual design phase, the city partnered with Metroplan Orlando to develop a Vision Zero Action Plan, which Oviedo approved in 2024. The road had been identified as an area where a disproportionate number of traffic deaths and serious injuries occur.

Planned improvements include:

• Widening West Mitchell Hammock Road approximately 5 feet along the north side to accommodate a 16-foot raised, sodded median and an 8-foot asphalt sidewalk
• Milling and resurfacing the roadway on both sides
• Drainage improvements, including regrading of the on-site dry retention pond, addition of flume inlets and extension of the existing double 72-inch reinforced concrete pipe cross drain to the north
• Minor utility work, including relocation of a fire hydrant
• Access management improvements, signage and pavement markings

Funding for the project includes approximately $2.3 million from the city’s third-generation sales tax, with an additional $1.5 million to be reimbursed by the State of Florida upon project completion.

During the first phase of construction, the right westbound lane will be closed, and traffic will be shifted to the center lane, which will be converted to a westbound through lane. There will still be two (2) westbound and eastbound lanes.

Construction is expected to wrap up in summer 2027.