Warning for drivers using Turnpike
 

Last Friday we needed to go to Clermont. Took 301 to the east Turnpike. Just before the Okahumpka rest area the traffic stopped cold. Traffic backed as far as can be seen. Checked Waze and saw red for more than 8 miles. We decided to go up to the rest area, Slowly…. And did a u-turn back home to TV.
So we went to Clermont today, Monday. rt 27 South to rt50 East. No turnpike. Took just over an hour with traffic on 27 & 50.

BUT we decided to take the pike back to TV about 3pm. Right about rt 470, the huge backup started on the eastbound pike. We saw a lot of construction work on the breakdown lane and off the road. They may have had the right travel lane shut down, to only one lane. Huge backup… almost all the way to the Rest Center… again. Yikes

The moral of the story: Don't check WAZE after you get into a traffic tie-up. Open Waze and use it at the start of your trip, and let it re-direct you to detours as they become necessary.

Usually when Waze detours me coming home from my dad's near West Palm it's because of traffic on 441/27. It has me get off at the exit -after- my usual exit. Last time though, it had me get off the exit before my usual, and took me through Eustis. I got home 5 minutes after I was expecting to get home. But apparently something was going on at the 441/27 exit that day, and I would've been stuck in traffic another 40 minutes if I hadn't used Waze.

Our group played Southern Oaks Friday and the traffic was backed up as far as we could see for the entire time we were playing. Must have been ugly.

sh^t happens.

& the reason for the post???

:0000000000luvmyhors

I heard from a Groome driver last Friday that there's a recurring sinkhole on the southbound side under repair on/near the turnpike that has been causing this for several weeks. This has caused many of the airport shuttles to run up to 30 mins later than normal.

??????????? perhaps warning other drivers using the Turnpike to beware as it seems this may be a recurring problem>

I believe THAT is the reason for the post, and they care for others, as a friendly warning.

Yikes always something to complain about...

One of the main reasons for taking the route is to get to the airport, which is, of course, a matter of importance regarding arrival time. In fact, my cart partner during that round at Southern Oaks that I mentioned, told me he got snarled up on the turnpike and it caused him to miss a flight out. All kinds of fun that is.

Valuable information to share, IMO.

Use waze all the time but very often waze will not inform us of traffic until very close to the start of it.

Google Maps traffic is also good to check before departing..

Info is a good thing

i just booked an airport transport with the private driver we use and was told the exact same thing. He said this is the fourth time he can remember that they have had to fill in the sinkhole and it is causing lots of ongoing traffic issues. Hopefully they can fix it permanently this time so it won't keep happening?

Do you question why that one guy keeps posting on the thread about nothing just to keep it alive - for like years?
This post is useful information for those of us who travel to Orlando regularly.

When is this work scheduled to end?

Can you be a bit more specific than on the southbound side on/near the turnpike? Is the sinkhole on the Turnpike? Is it on 470 west of the Turnpike, 470 east of the Turnpike, or somewhere else? If we know exactly where it is, we can avoid it.

?????????????
Just love to do your one-line posts to get attention and post count up???????

Some Realtime traffic cameras and a web site to see them would be a good idea. Can Florida afford them? Is there a website available that I am not aware off?

Go to fl511.com. Look for the round orange Wi-Fi looking icon. It isn’t live and sometimes the camera is offline but you can see the traffic ok.

Another Groome guy told me they were on their seventh attempt to fix it.

The sinkhole is causing traffic on the Turnpike to go down from 2 lanes to 1 somewhere south of 470, I believe just north of the SR19 interchange. There's not really a viable detour other than taking 470 east to go through Yalaha and Apopka since that's an extra 25 mins which is around how long you're likely to be delayed at worst. So pretty much unavoidable as things stand now.

Apple Maps will give you the same thing. Apple Maps will also alert us if there is a cop checking out traffic ahead. Plus, Apple Maps will alert me before a turn by tapping my wrist with my Apple Watch.

Like this is unusual??? use Waze & FL511 before you go and you'll know.

So sorry for the “mess” you were involved in.

Construction is going on where the Turnpike off-ramp goes onto 301. Yes, it’s a mess, and it will be probably for a year. Maybe longer. It can be faster to stay in the left lane, bypass that exit, get onto I-75, then get off at 44, even though it’s about seven miles further.

Yes, this! We live very close to the 301 turnpike on-ramp but have had to use the 470 on-ramp further south to avoid most of this backup for a few weeks now if we’re heading anywhere in that direction. It’s a daily backup until that sinkhole has been resolved. If we’re traveling early enough (up to 8-9 am) there’s no backup yet, or it’s just beginning so not too bad yet.

The problem maybe that you were east bound. The turnpike runs north and south.

??. obviously you are not Mr. helpful to others

Thank you for that info, it's good to know with it being the way to the airport. you were smart to turn around in the rest stop.

The original post stated that the delay is south of 470 and you are saying it is at 301 and you used the 470 south on ramp. I'm confused.

When the happens some motorists and trucks get off on 470 and plan to take it to 27 and then get back on the turnpike. This is not a very good alternate. The backup from the light on 27 is almost all the way to Meggison. It might be longer than staying on the turnpike.

Yep, the Turnpike is unpredictable so we take 27 to Clermont.

Just so we can read your informative, helpful, and well thought out humble replies:posting::1rotfl:

I haven’t been over to see this in person but google maps and fl511.com are not showing any backups. Also, the camera at that location seems to be gone.

[QUOTE=vintageogauge;2322375]The original post stated that the delay is south of 470 and you are saying it is at 301 and you used the 470 south on ramp. I'm confused.[/QUOTE

By taking surface streets south to the 470 on-ramp rather than enter the pike at 301 we were able to avoid several miles of barely moving traffic. Once we entered the pike at 470 we had only a short distance until traffic was moving again. It didn’t really save us time, it just saved us several miles of sitting on the pike barely moving. It’s incorrect that the turnpike wasn’t backed up until south of 470. The backup began at the service plaza.

I’m heading for the airport Sunday. I’ve been wondering where I should get on the turnpike, so I find this post very useful.
If my mother was reading this she would say,
“If you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all.”

The construction is over. No backups, get on closest to you.