East end: I-275 County Pinellas County, Florida | Counties: Pinellas | |
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History: Approved February 2014
Construction to start 2017 West end: US 19 (SR 690) and Bayside Bridge (SR 686) | ||
Fdot district seven gateway express
The Gateway Express project is a planned toll road in Pinellas County, Florida. The project consists of two branches: an elevated highway to be designated State Road 690 (SR 690) above 118th Avenue North between Interstate 275 (I-275) and U.S. Highway 19 (US 19) and a raised highway in the median of SR 686 from 118th Avenue North to the Bayside Bridge. Construction was approved in February 2014 and is expected to begin in 2017, taking five years to complete.
Contents
Route description
The Gateway Express project consists of two connected segments.
A four-lane, elevated segment will run above 118th Avenue from US 19 to I-275. This section will be designated SR 690.
A raised, four lane expressway will be built in the median of SR 686 and carry the same designation. This segment will run from the planned SR 690 segment north to the Bayside Bridge and connect to St. Petersburg–Clearwater International Airport.
Both segments will be tolled using electronic toll gantries for SunPass transponders or pay-by-plate billing.
History
The Gateway Express project aims to solve transportation problems in Pinellas County, where several expressway projects were cancelled in the 1970s and 1980s, leaving the county without any major limited-access thoroughfares except for I-275. Significant upgrades to US 19 in the 2000s improved traffic flow north–south in the county. However, only local roads travel east–west. The Gateway Express project had been identified for a long time as a priority project to improve traffic flow in Pinellas County.
The project was announced by Governor Rick Scott in a press conference with local officials on February 17, 2014. It had been in the works for 15 years. Construction is expected to begin in early 2017 and take five years to complete at a cost of $330 million. The project was not expected to be funded for another 15–20 years. Funding will be provided by the Federal Highway Administration ($153 million), Penny for Pinellas funds ($53 million), and the State of Florida (remainder of project costs).
State Road 690
The entire route is in Pinellas County.
State Road 686 express lanes
The entire route is in Pinellas County.