Ocala’s planned Buc-ee’s still does not have a firm grand-opening date, but the enormous road project needed to serve it is moving forward. A previous look at Florida’s upcoming Buc-ee’s locations noted that Ocala depended on a brand-new Interstate 75 interchange; that interchange is now an active construction project.
The Florida Department of Transportation is building a new diverging diamond interchange at I-75 and Northwest 49th Street in northern Marion County. FDOT says the project will handle future traffic growth, relieve nearby interchanges and specifically “facilitate access” to the Buc-ee’s planned for the area.
The interchange is a $59.4 million project
FDOT’s current project page lists the interchange as being in the construction phase, with a cost of $59.4 million. The agency currently estimates completion in fall 2028.
The project includes a diverging diamond design, two-way access improvements, lighting and accommodations for pedestrians and bicyclists. Marion County is also coordinating nearby road connections that will tie into the new interchange.
That work matters because the Buc-ee’s site is not simply waiting for a store building to go up. The surrounding transportation network has to be capable of handling the huge traffic volumes a destination travel center can generate.
FDOT’s work-program records also show the project is actively progressing, with Lane Construction Corporation listed as the contractor.
The road timeline is clearer than the store timeline
Buc-ee’s has been tied to a large site near the future interchange for years, and county planning documents have described a massive travel center development in the area. But the company has not announced an exact Ocala opening date.
That makes fall 2028 an important infrastructure milestone rather than a guaranteed Buc-ee’s opening date. The store could require additional site work, inspections and construction after—or alongside—the interchange project.
Florida already has Buc-ee’s locations in Daytona Beach and St. Augustine, and the company has several other projects moving through development around the state. Ocala would give Buc-ee’s a major inland stop along I-75 rather than another location on the Atlantic Coast.
For now, the clearest progress is happening outside the future store itself. The new interchange is funded, under construction and officially described by FDOT as providing access to the planned Buc-ee’s.
The scale of the interchange project also helps explain why Ocala has always carried more uncertainty than a Buc-ee’s built beside an already-finished exit. Here, the access itself is part of the development story, and the public road schedule is likely to remain an important factor in the store’s eventual timing.
That is a meaningful step toward making the Ocala location possible, even if drivers still do not have a firm date for when they will be able to pull off I-75 and see the beaver sign.
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