ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — For the first time in 70 years, Magnolia Avenue in Downtown Orlando will operate as a two-way street.
The city says the popular hot spot has been in need of beautification, starting with Magnolia Avenue. On Thursday, the city wrapped up phase one of the Magnolia Avenue Streetscape Project.
“This is the first real progress on the DTO Action Plan,” Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said. “It makes it safer and easier to access businesses.”
Crews have spent most of the year converting Magnolia into a two-way street from South to Livingston Streets. It has operated as a one-way since 1956 to support traffic after the construction of I-4.
“Having that access so that people know I can get to that business easily regardless of where I’m going,” David Barilla, with the City of Orlando, said. “Putting more eyes on those businesses.”
The project also removed most of its dedicated bus lanes and added 100 street parking spaces.
This isn’t the end of improvements to downtown. Next up is phase two.
This will start with the conversion of one-way to two-way traffic on Orange and Rosalind Avenues.
“We’re in design of Orange and Rosalind right now,” Barilla said. “We’re in the midst of selecting the construction team who will ultimately be doing that construction.”
Magnolia Avenue connects some of the places that make @DWNTWN_ORLANDO unique like Dr. Phillips Center, CityArts, library and history center. It's been converted from one-way to two-way travel with more parking making it easier to access cultural institutions and small businesses. https://t.co/qjubi8wmNb
— Mayor Buddy Dyer (@orlandomayor) September 17, 2026
The city hopes to start construction on Orange or Rosalind by next year or in early 2028.
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