As if preparing for a traffic hurricane, residents of the western communities are being urged to make sure their gas tanks are full, and their refrigerators and pantries are well stocked, before Friday, Aug. 1, when the intersection of Northlake Blvd. and the Beeline Highway will be closed for repairs to the CSX railroad crossing there.
Some 45,000 vehicles travel Northlake on a typical workday, according to an April 2024 traffic count. Overall, some 70,000 drivers are expected to be impacted by the temporary closure.
“We understand it’s an inconvenience, but your patience will keep everyone safe,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said.
By some estimates, typical morning rush hour drives could be extended by as much as three hours as drivers wait to make their way south on Coconut Blvd. and Seminole Pratt Whitney Road — the only two detour routes south. Some drivers may have to go as much as 35 miles out of their way to reach their usual destinations.
Significant east-west backups also are expected on Okeechobee and Southern boulevards. They are the county’s main east-west thoroughfares in central Palm Beach County, aside from Northlake.
Detailed plans have been worked out between the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue, and the municipalities in the path of the storm, including Royal Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Loxahatchee Groves and Westlake. The Indian Trail Improvement District, an unincorporated area encompassing some 17,000 homes primarily in The Acreage, will bear the brunt of the increased traffic.
Framed by CSX as a critical safety issue, county officials had little choice but to allow the closure so that tracks used by freight and passenger trains can be repaired. But they had hoped the work could be done earlier in the summer.
The closing is expected to last eight days and finish just ahead of the official start of Palm Beach County public school classes on Monday, Aug. 11. There are 14 schools in the area that will be impacted, with start-of-school preparations scheduled for Aug. 4-8.
Palm Beach County School Board Vice Chair Marcia Andrews, who represents the county’s western areas, said Wednesday that teachers will be expected to report for classroom preparation and other pre-start activities.
“The principals know what’s happening, and they’ll be flexible,” said Andrews, whose District 6 includes most schools directly affected.
But teachers who live in the traffic-crush zone and work elsewhere also will be impacted.
“We’re encouraging teachers to leave early and to find alternate routes where possible,” she said. “Unfortunately, a lot these schools are located in areas where it’s one-way in, one-way out. It’s going to be a bottleneck.”
However, Andrews said that if CSX finishes on time, buses should roll on schedule for day-one classes.
Meanwhile, Bradshaw also encouraged carpooling, and for those who can work from home to do so. For those who must drive, he urged them to leave early and be flexible.
Bradshaw said drivers should not attempt to swing south on ITID roads not designated as detours. Many residential roads in the semi-rural enclave are dead ends, and others are dirt and gravel and run precariously close to canals, especially dangerous for those not used to driving them.
ITID plans to block southbound access to Grapeview and Hall boulevards, as well as 140th Avenue North. That plan did not sit well with ITID Supervisor Betty Argue. She is concerned about ITID residents north of Northlake who may need to get to Pierce Hammock Elementary School on Hamlin Blvd.
“I don’t think we should be closing any roads, for the sole reason that we’re inconveniencing our residents if we do,” Argue said at an ITID meeting on Wednesday, July 16.
However, the board stuck with the plan shared at a June 24 emergency meeting, and formulated in conjunction with the PBSO, which is expected to have a large presence in the area throughout the closure.
First-responder vehicles will have uninterrupted access around the CSX work, according to a PBSO statement.
ITID President Elizabeth Accomando said this week that the tidal wave of traffic will provide an excellent example of why the long-planned State Road 7 extension from 60th Street North, along the east side of the Ibis community to Northlake is critical.
“Along with the extension of Coconut Blvd. and Seminole Pratt Whitney Road to the Beeline Highway,” she added. “We need more than one way out.”
Argue said the extreme traffic crunch will be “a preview” of what it will be like for residents of The Acreage and the rest of ITID if aggressive development continues along Northlake.
As for the present, “between the PBSO and our staff, I think they’ll do a great job,” Accomando said. “I’m comfortable that they’re ready.”
Learn more about the upcoming road closure at www.pbc.gov/northlakeclosure.
