So far, so good on new I-275 lanes

TAMPA - There were only minor rush hour traffic delays on the new northbound lanes of Interstate 275 through Downtown Tampa this morning.

"Watching the news this morning watching at 5:30 and I figured it was going to be a lot worse," driver Randy Henderson said. "It took about 10 minutes to get through. I thought it was going to be a lot longer."

The Florida Department of Transportation opened all three lanes and ramps between Himes Avenue and the Ashley Drive ahead of schedule this weekend. The work was expected to be completed 5:30 a.m. today.

FDOT is warning drivers to slow down because the speed limit is 45 miles per hour through the construction zones.

"This is not a place to be on your cell phone, eating, doing anything that's distracting you from driving as you approach the river downtown," FDOT spokesperson McShaffrey said.

FDOT is also asking semi trucks to drive in the middle lane, and all drivers should avoid passing other cars near the construction.

"We have narrow lanes down there, only a five-foot shoulder off to the right and virtually no shoulder on the left, so people need to be very alert as they go through that area,"  McShaffrey said.

Additional lanes of the I-275 project are expected to open later this year.  And that's great news for delivery drivers like Clark Wesley.

"You don't want to be sitting in traffic for 20 minutes. You want to get where you got to go," Wesley said.

This video, courtesy the Florida Department of Transportation, shows several views of how Interstate 275 will look between the bridge and downtown when all the construction is complete: