Drivers heading south on Tampa Street toward the Tampa Convention Center will have to take a different route starting Oct. 20, when the intersection at East Brorein Street closes for roughly two years to make room for the $362 million Lee Roy Selmon Expressway expansion.
Beginning at 8 p.m., construction crews will close South Tampa Street at Brorein Street to install support pillars for the expanded expressway, sending drivers east along Brorein toward Franklin Street. The detour will require converting part of Brorein, normally a westbound roadway, to carry eastbound traffic, closing the leftmost lane between South Morgan Street and South Florida Avenue and installing barricades and lane separators to guide vehicles through downtown.
Despite the changes, the Tampa Convention Center parking garage and upper loading docks will remain accessible throughout construction, except for an overnight closure of the garage entrance while crews restripe Brorein Street between South Tampa Street and South Franklin Street from 8 p.m. Oct. 20 to 5 a.m. Oct. 21.
The support pillars are part of a much larger effort to expand the Selmon Expressway from four to six lanes along a 4.5-mile stretch between Himes Avenue and Florida Avenue, where traffic has increased more than 80% over the past decade, according to the Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority. The additional lanes will be built within the authority’s existing right of way, with one new inside lane in each direction intended to relieve congestion and keep commuters on the expressway rather than diverting onto neighborhood roads such as Bayshore Boulevard.
Along with the additional roadway capacity, the project will bring new sidewalks and lighting to underpasses beneath the expressway, improving pedestrian access along the corridor. The entire $362 million investment will be funded through toll revenues collected by the authority, without state or federal tax dollars.