LEE COUNTY, Fla. — Alico Road can be a real time saver — especially when traveling to Fort Myers or Cape Coral — but more cars are now using Alico Road east of I-75, creating more congestion in the area.
Lee County is trying to address this increase with the Alico Road Connector Study Project.
The three-phase, more than $100 million project will widen Alico Road to four lanes and is aimed at helping people get from I-75 to Lehigh Acres more easily.
Robert Finkelstien lives in the area and drives the stretch of Alico from Green Meadow Road to Lehigh Acres often.
"There’s not much that you can do about the traffic that’s going up and down Alico," Finkelstien said.
“We are hoping to get some relief to some of the congestion throughout the county," said Deputy Director of the Lee County Department of Transportation Rob Price. "And provide a quicker way for people to get to the interstate and get to the south.”
The project will build up Green Meadow Road all the way up to Sunshine Boulevard in the heart of Lehigh Acres.
“The traffic conditions throughout the county are obviously going up there’s been a lot of development that’s happening," said Price.
Phase one of the project will start along Alico at Airport Haul Road, going east to Green Meadow. This phase wouldn't be done for nearly three years, though, in late 2026.
“It’s a big development," said Finkelstien. "Lee County and Alico Road are major thoroughfares."
Phase two will take Green Meadow Rd. up to State Road 82 — but that's still many years off.
“This is going to provide an alternate route for all of the homes being built in Lehigh Acres to get south and to get to I-75, so it’s a very important traffic artery," said Price.
The county said to expect the entire project to be completed in 2028, or even 2029.
