POINCIANA, Fla. —There are some major transportation problems in Poinciana and Osceola County leaders set up a special meeting to discuss them.

• Residents say local road used to take 10 minutes to travel; now an hour
• Osceola County commissioner says looking for more funding
• Studies to determine if connecting Poinciana Parkway to connect to I-4 is doable

Noemi Bentivenga has been living in Poinciana for 15 years and she is tired of the traffic. Bentivenga went to a special meeting discussing transportation in the town along with many other residents.

"The road of Pleasant Hill is always packed. It takes you one hour to get home. It used to take you 10 minutes," Bentivenga said.

The room was so packed that it was standing room only. LYNX, Central Florida Expressway Authority and SunRail were all there to give the update.

The commissioner overseeing district 3, Brandon Arrington, said they are working on creating more connectivity for commuters.

"We're working our best to try and improve transportation and overall quality of life in Osceola County," Arrington said. "But at the end of the day it comes down to available funding and that's a discussion this commission is looking on having at our next workshop this coming month on December 17."

Studies are underway to have Poinciana Parkway connect all the way to Interstate 4. And also to have a Southport connector in which Poinciana Parkway would head east and connect to Florida's Turnpike.

However, these long-range projects are estimated to take years to come to fruition. These traffic issues weigh heavily on people like Bentivenga who has diabetes and joint pain among other health issues.

She wants something to get done sooner rather than later before it could cost someone their life, including her own she said.

"I live here. I am a sick woman. If I need to go to the hospital I will die in an ambulance because there is no way out," she said.

The county state just last year 3,700 new homes were built in Osceola County. That is 1,000 more than the previous year, showing how much growth there has been.