Fly under the flyover

[Bill Coats | Times]
New Tampa's most eye-catching construction project holds the promise of quicker access onto Interstate 75. But when it opens next year, a new flyover actually will speed up traffic in every direction on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard.

"It's a benefit for everybody who drives on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, period," said John McShaffrey, spokesman for the Florida Department of Transportation.

See a graphic showing how the flyover will work. This illustration also appears on the cover of North of Tampa in Friday's St. Petersburg Times.

By the numbers:

$42-million: Cost of this project.

65 feet: Maximum height off the ground of the flyover’s deck.

9.5 inches: Thickness of the concrete road bed that’s to be poured atop the girder tubs.

3 miles: Length of the flyover’s ramp, to allow for smooth merging onto I-75.

900 pounds: Weight, in pounds per linear foot, of each steel girder tub recently raised into place for the flyover.

-- Bill Coats and Charlos Gary, Times staff