PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Relief may be on the way for drivers on East Lake Road in Pinellas County.

Pinellas County is moving forward with studies to see how to deal with the traffic there.

John Miolla has spent a lot of time on East Lake Road. He’s lived in north Pinellas County for nearly three decades.

And he’s seen quite the change, going back to when the road was just two lanes.

“It was an absolute pleasure,” Miolla said. “But now the development that’s going on since then, particularly north of us, has created a big traffic problem.”

He says neighbors are split on what to do about the growing traffic.

Miolla founded the Council of North County Neighborhoods, a community group for East Lake neighbors.

He says some want the road widened. But others worry that will just cause more traffic. Either way, they agree that something should be done, blaming a lot of the congestion on Pasco County’s growth.

“Traffic has increased by probably 200, 300 percent. Much of it caused by the development in Pasco County,” Miolla said.

Pinellas County is continuing to study what can be done. The county finished an 18-month study on East Lake Road last fall, which showed the road is over capacity.

The county commission then approved another one on the environmental impact and engineering of any potential changes.

Possible fixes are widening the road or overhauling some of the intersections. But those modifications would be years away.

Miolla knows it’s a complicated issue but is hopeful for change.

“There is no silver bullet. But there are things that can be done,” Miolla said.

The commission recently discussed some short-term fixes, like changing traffic light times, which could be done in the near future.