Avoiding I-4 going from Sanford to Tampa?

[treloarf]

We will be taking the autotrain this weekend & will be driving to Tampa 1st. Can someone tell me the directions to avoid I-4 around the Disney area. I think it's a toll road. Thanks much!

 

[PammyK]

Unless you are arriving at rush hour, there is really no reason to avoid I-4. However, if you are arriving at rush hour, you can take the 417 (Central Florida Greenway) south. I believe it does intersect somewhere with I-4 but I'm not sure exactly where. You should see signs for it though. 417 is a toll road and you can expect to pay at least $5 in tolls if not more.

Also...if you have a cell phone, you can dial 511 and get I-4 traffic information to check if there are any backups. The areas to worry about are "Orlando Metro" and "Attractions" if you call. I'm not 100% sure if it will work for people whose cell phone numbers are not local though.

 

[thegales]

417 connects to I-4 at exit 101B (off I-4). We come from the north, and this past trip we exited from I-4 onto 417. Yes it did cost money in tolls, but the drive was much more relaxing. We took it all the way to Exit 3, which takes you right into WDW.

 

[NotUrsula]

Time is always money, but even more so when you are on vacation. Thank goodness for the option of taking the toll road to bypass the traffic.

The reason to avoid I-4 through Orlando proper is the traffic delays, and the way to get around that is to pay an add'l toll to use 417. I-4 near downtown Orlando is horrible at rush hour and not much better the rest of the day. In my experience, the only time I-4 is reliably delay-free is late at night.

 

[treloarf]

We will be on I-4 Saturday morning around 10:00 - 11:00 if train is on time, which I wouldn't think is rush hour. But from the previous poster, we may just take the toll road. Thanks again