TAMPA, Fla. — Living in South Tampa has its perks for Kevin Zunt. He’s a quick walk to restaurants, shops, and Bayshore Boulevard.
But there’s one thing that’s not so perfect and that's the road he lives on: Interbay Boulevard.
“I felt for a while that it needed to be improved, widened, enhanced,” he said.
There are a couple problems.
Number one, there can be heavy congestion during certain times of day, and Zunt believes it’s mainly generated from work traffic going to and from MacDill Air Force base on the narrow two-lane road.
“Yeah, and people trying to make their own roadway, you know, going around the people that are stopped,” Zunt said.
Number two, there are areas that he says aren’t so safe for pedestrians and cyclists, including stretches where the sidewalk suddenly stops.
“So, you know, in the area where you have the gaps in the sidewalk or like the potholes for the bicyclists that they have to drive around, I worry about that,” he said.
Two years ago, we reported the City of Tampa was collecting feedback as it considered a plan to address those problems with millions in funding, but two years later, there’s been no construction.
“It doesn’t make you too keen on increasing your taxes when the work from two years ago hasn’t been done yet,” Zunt said.
Zunt reached out to ABC Action News to get answers from the city, and we found out the project is still a go and just a month away from starting.
“That makes me very happy,” Zunt said.
The City of Tampa plans to spend close to $2 million to add a center turn lane along Interbay Boulevard, install a 10-foot wide pedestrian trail, and add eight new crosswalks.
The work will take two and a half years to complete, but Zunt says the improvements will be well worth the wait.
“I can’t wait,” he said.
Read more about the project on the City of Tampa’s website by clicking here.
