Panama City Beach Parkway expansion inches forward. Two of 3 segments under construction
PANAMA CITY BEACH − The sounds of roadway construction are a common tune on the Beach.
According to Ian Satter, spokesperson for the Florida Department of Transportation, work continues to inch forward in a massive project to expand a portion of U.S. 98 (Panama City Beach Parkway) in Bay County from four to six lanes.
There now are about five miles of roadway under construction.
"The U.S. 98 widening project in Bay County will provide congestion relief for the corridor, improve safety and emergency access routes and enhance regional economic development opportunities," Satter said.
The project aims to expand the road from Mandy Lane to the Hathaway bridge, however, it was broken down into three segments. Construction of segments one and two broke ground in the fall, but it could take until 2026 for work to begin on segment three.
Segment one spans from Mandy Lane to Nautilus Street and is projected to cost about $50 million. Segment two runs from Nautilus Street to Richard Jackson Boulevard and will cost about $60 million. Segment three will span from Richard Jackson Boulevard to the Hathaway Bridge and is expected to cost about $75 million.
The project was split into segments to help with planning and securing state funding, Satter said.
"When we have projects of this magnitude, when you can break them down into segments, it's easier to program the funding to get the funding available," he said. "Fortunately for us, the two (segments) under construction, we were able to program almost simultaneously."
Satter also said that FDOT has in its tentative five-year work program for Segment 3 to begin in 2026, but that could change based on the approval of the state Legislature.
Segments one and two should be complete by late 2027. That means all three segments might be under construction at the same time for about a year. Like segments one and two, segment three is expected to take about three to four years to complete.
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During construction, crews will be most active from about 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Drivers also might experience temporary lane closures. However, at least one lane in each direction will always remain open.
"It's not uncommon for us to have projects of this length broken down into segments," Satter said. "The concern there, obviously, is ensuring that people can continue to get to their homes, get to their place of business (and) keeping those businesses accessible and keeping that area open."
This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Panama City Beach Parkway expansion inches forward: What's ahead?
