SunTrax keeps building out its self-driving vehicle proving ground near Auburndale

SunTrax is a state-run testing campus for tolling technology and connected/automated vehicles, sitting along the Polk Parkway (SR 570) near Auburndale. FDOT's Five-Year Work Program tracks it as item 437300, a package of miscellaneous construction contracts that has been rolling since 2017 and carries a known contract value of about $145.7 million.

The records show several rounds of work: a large main construction contract handled by Johnson Bros. Corporation, plus separate contracts for hardscaping, a visual barrier along the Polk Parkway, PowerTrax in-field work, and toll plaza operations. Some of these are marked complete while others remain active, including toll facility operations work running into 2027.

The work program lists the current item status as pre-construction underway, and additional connected/automated vehicle test facility construction was let as recently as 2024. The campus spans a corridor of test tracks and support facilities in this part of Polk County.