After decades of planning and four years of construction, the PortMiami Tunnel will open in a few days for travel in an effort to speed up truck and other vehicle movements in and out of the South Florida facility, following a dedication ceremony on Monday.

The PortMiami Tunnel will improve access to and from the port, serving as a dedicated roadway connector linking the port with the MacArthur Causeway, also known as State Road A1A, and I-395. Some 4,500 trucks are part of the nearly 16,000 vehicles that visit the port each day.

Prior to the tunnel being built, the only way into the Port of Miami was through Port Boulevard. That caused heavy truck traffic, cruise line buses and private cars to congest the narrow Central Business District of Miami, according to port officials.

The $900 million dollar project is part of a $2 billion dollar expansion effort by the port in anticipation of larger ships that are expected once the Panama Canal expansion is completed next year.