Hillsborough Plots Six-Lane Makeover Near Gibsonton

Drivers who white-knuckle their way through Big Bend Road at rush hour may finally be getting some relief. Hillsborough County is pushing ahead with plans to widen roughly three-quarters of a mile of Big Bend Road between U.S. 41 and Covington Garden Drive into a six-lane urban corridor, a roughly $25.2 million project aimed squarely at chronic congestion near Waterset and the I-75 interchange. The upgrade also folds in new sidewalks, stormwater improvements and a landscaped median.

Scope, schedule and price

The county has pegged the budget for the western segment at $25,194,932 and lists the project in the design phase, with design work scheduled to wrap up in mid-2026. Construction is expected to begin in late 2026 and finish by mid-2028, although officials flag all of those figures as estimates that could shift. Those details are outlined on the project page from Hillsborough County.

How it is funded

To help cover the tab, the Hillsborough MPO's draft FY2025-29 work program plugs in a $12.041 million Transportation Regional Incentive Program (TRIP) allocation for the Big Bend widening, scheduled for FY2026. The line item is listed as TRIP funding for FPID 453056-1 in the draft work program from the MPO.

Design details and timeline

The design does more than just add asphalt. Plans call for resurfacing and widening the corridor to six lanes with curb and gutter, a closed drainage system, a landscaped median ranging from 11 to 36 feet wide and 10-foot sidewalks on both sides of the road. A new southbound left-turn lane and traffic signal are also slated for Kings Lake Drive and Old Big Bend Road. Osprey Observer reports that while design is due in 2026, procurement could run into 2027 and construction might not be complete until mid-2029 under its timeline.

Why now

County planning documents show the corridor is already straining under heavy traffic, with some segments recording adjusted average annual daily traffic above 30,000 vehicles per day. Regular queues stack up at the I-75 ramps during peak hours, turning routine commutes into daily slog. The Big Bend Road PLAT Study points to rapid build-out around Waterset and nearby commercial growth as key reasons the county is prioritizing a full reconstruction of this stretch.

Public input and next steps

To get residents in the loop, Hillsborough County hosted an in-person engagement session on May 21 at Eisenhower Middle School and opened a virtual feedback window from May 21 through June 3 as part of the design process. Anyone looking to keep tabs on procurement, construction updates or future meetings can contact Hillsborough County Public Works at (813) 635-5400. Meeting details and contact information are outlined in a news release from Hillsborough County.