The $52.6 million rebuild of the Clark Road interchange at Interstate 75 is finished.

State and local officials cut the ribbon Friday at Twin Lakes Park to mark the end of years of construction on one of Sarasota County's busiest corridors, the Business Observer reported.

New diamond design aims to improve safety

The interchange is now an eight-lane diverging diamond, a design that temporarily shifts traffic to the opposite side of the roadway before routing it back. The Florida Department of Transportation said the layout is meant to improve safety and regional mobility.

Beyond the new diamond configuration, crews added auxiliary lanes on I-75, reconstructed on- and off-ramps, added new mast arms at the Catamaran Drive signal and installed a new signal at Queensbury Boulevard. Workers also built noise barrier walls, laid buffered bike lanes and sidewalks, and resurfaced existing pavement.

Thousands of trees planted along corridor

Crews installed more than 3,600 plants and trees along the corridor for beautification and long-term environmental sustainability, according to an FDOT statement. Species include royal palms, saw palmettos, cabbage palms, crape myrtles, royal poincianas and European fan palms.

State Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, attended the ceremony and said he had encouraged FDOT for six years to upgrade the interchange. Gruters, who also chairs the Republican National Committee, said he wanted the landscaping to give Sarasota a distinct seasonal identity, with blooming trees that let drivers know exactly where they are.

"Hopefully, this is the first of many interchanges where we're going to have all these wonderful trees to celebrate what people love about our community," Gruters said at the ceremony.

Second diverging diamond built in area

Clark Road's diverging diamond is the second of its kind in the Sarasota area. The first opened at University Parkway and I-75 in 2017 at a cost of $75.3 million. FDOT says the University Parkway interchange was the first diverging diamond in Florida and remains among the busiest in the country.

No additional phases or public comment deadlines were announced at the ceremony.