By Christine Moore, Orange County District 2 Commissioner

I wrote in last week’s column about Orange County government’s job of maintaining more than 3,000 miles of roadway. And, as we know, that’s enough mileage to cover a trip to California.  

Resurfacing, with only two-lane roads, while many roadways are four and five lanes, requires $1.5 billion every 12-15 years. The county public works budget is only $250 million annually. Thus, the county is behind over $5 billion dollars. 

To reiterate, before providing solutions, consider that the county resurfaced West Ponkan Road from US 441 to Plymouth Sorrento with a price tag of $2 million. A wise former county CFO, Randy Singh, told me upon my election to the County Commission in 2019, that the public works budget must allocate sufficient funds to maintain roadways before contemplating any additional capacity. It costs around $5.5 million per “lane mile” to expand roadways. 

What are the solutions for addressing lagging infrastructure improvements? 

1. Lobby the Florida Legislature effectively so they pass fewer developer-friendly, last-minute laws. The Legislature does not allow developers to be forced to expand roadway capacity. 

2. Stop building suburban sprawl neighborhoods; keep things compact, protecting rural areas. For this I borrow from Charles Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns, an organization I have studied with and benefitted from in policymaking decisions.  

In an essay published last May, Marohn writes: “When you sprawl outward, every new house adds more to the public obligation to maintain. More pipes, more roads, more services. But there’s no corresponding bump in tax productivity. Instead, you create… a place where every new resident consumes more than they contribute. It may start out exciting, but eventually the … community is stretched too thin.”   

3. Work with CFX on contributing toward improvements near major highway entranceways. 

4. Continue to seek federal money through membership in MetroPlan. I will serve as Chairperson of MetroPlan beginning February 2026. While on the MetroPlan board, I secured $5 million for Rock Springs and Welch roads improvements. Design begins in 2026. 

5. Seek additional state and federal grant funding. 

6. Strike better road deals with developers who cause the increased need for capacity.  

(For example, I lobbied for $5 million for Ponkan Road improvements on the Paulucci project over and above the regular transportation impact fees.) 

I hope this column and last week’s give you a better idea of the challenges local governments face in maintaining and funding new roadway infrastructure. Let’s solve our infrastructure woes together.