Comments on: Should Florida’s Turnpike be extended?

By: A. Perez

A. Perez — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 20:32:11 +0000

I would call the spur to Panama City I-165 and would give I-185 a 2 digit number like I-63 because I-67 would go to Pennsylvania or Michigan. Also, why not multiplex it with I-65 from Bainbridge, GA to the junction with the suncoast parkway and have I-63 end in Tampa? I,d route I-65 in south Florida through the Golden Glades interchange, which has to be comepletely redone anyway and onto the Palmetto Exwy and the Don Shula Exwy and rejoining the turnpike and ending in Homestead, FL. I’d call the orphaned section of the turnpike I-265 and the rest of the Palmetto I-965.

By: A. Perez

A. Perez — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 19:10:49 +0000

I would love to see the Florida Turnpike extended north past Tallahassee to the border with Georgia. I’d have the highway continue to Bainbridge, GA, interchanging with the future interstate 185 then turn west onto us 84 to the Alabama border and on to Dothan, AL tying in to a spur freeway to Panama City, FL. I’d have the highway along us 231 to Montgomery, AL and have it interchange with interstate 85 and any future beltway freeways and tie in to interstate 65. I would call the entire highway to Miami I-65 and rename the segment from Mobile to Montgomery, AL to I-85. Then there would be a badly needed third main interstate from Miami to the Florida border and give Orlando more interstate service.

By: Costa

Costa — Wed, 13 May 2009 17:36:41 +0000

When I lived in Tallahassee, holiday weekends were bad on I-10 as students left to get home down south. But switching over to US 19/98/Alt 27 was considerably faster (and emptier!) and if I do travel up that way, I do use the triplex. The problem is people have been brainwashed into thinking Interstates get you somewhere faster, and they have forgotten about the back roads. Would I use the Interstates in Florida to evacuate for a hurricane? No way!!

By: Mike G

Mike G — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 19:52:11 +0000

Even though I have been gone from Florida for awhile—I have spent much of my life in the state–either living or spending much time in the following locations: Venice, Vero Beach, Boca Raton, Ft. Lauderdale, the Miami area, Key West, Melbourne, Orlando, Daytona.
I sure earned my stripes using sections of US 1, A1A, I-75, I-95, I-4, SR 60, 301, 441, 17/92, The Turnpike, The Beeline Expressway and many other Florida roadways to get to work and to do the things we need for daily life

By: Mike G

Mike G — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 19:44:18 +0000

My parents now live part of the year in The Villages—so that brings me down to that part of Florida regularly now—I had been pretty much not gone to Florida since I left the state back in 1990—I can’t get over how much the traffic volumne has increased on both I-95 and I-75 along their entire lengths—it might be a good idea to extend the turnpike north from its current terminus at Wildwood—I know that I-10 and I-4 are both damn busy now too and not just near major metro areas like Jax, Orlando or others—maybe Florida had better do well to consider construction of a passenger rail system as well–I know that has been discussed in the past.

By: Edward Ringwald

Edward Ringwald — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:27:50 +0000

I am in agreement with the replies on this post. I would see a northward extension of the Florida Turnpike to a junction with the Suncoast Parkway (FL Toll 589) in Citrus County north of Crystal River. After that, continue the Suncoast Parkway to its present proposed terminus with US 19/98.

Moreover, I would support an extension of the Suncoast Parkway north of Citrus County either as a separate highway or as a part of a US 19/98 brought up to expressway standards. I would support the option of building a separate highway as bypasses of towns on US 19/98 such as Chiefland and Perry would not be needed. I feel the Suncoast Parkway should be extended as far as Tallahassee with a connection at Interstate 10; this would give motorists coming to Tallahassee from Tampa (and vice versa) an expressway alternative to going out of the way on Interstates 75 and 10 or using US 19/98 and 27.

Moreover, if Georgia plans on an extension of Interstate 185 from Columbus by way of Albany and Thomasville and ending at Interstate 10 in Monticello, perhaps a spur of the Suncoast Parkway could be built to Interstate 10, which would become Interstate 185 north of Interstate 10 and a possible (my guess) FL Toll 185 south of Interstate 10 in Monticello. That would conceivably pave a toll expressway route in Florida and free interstate highway in Georgia from Tampa to Atlanta (via Columbus and Interstate 85) as an alternative to increasingly congested Interstate 75.

By: Dan

Dan — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 03:05:11 +0000

To Stephane Dumas,
The stub at the north end of Suncoast Parkway is supposed to go to US 19/98 in Red Level south of the Cross Florida Barge Canal(unless the NIMBYists of Citrus County con the people into stopping that from happening). I had a map from the Turnpike Enterprise itself, indicating that the Florida’s Turnpike Extension was supposed to end a lot further south of FL 121.

By: Chris Lawrence

Chris Lawrence — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:29:42 +0000

As someone who used to live in Ocala, I think the smarter plan would be to upgrade the US 27/Alt 27 corridor with tolled bypasses of Williston and Bronson; you’d capture the Ocala-bound traffic and avoid some of the environmental issues with the “direct” routing. Then add toll bypasses at Perry, Chiefland, and the other towns on the US 19 corridor up to I-10 that could eventually form part of the Suncoast Pkwy extension towards Tallahassee if traffic ever requires it.

By: Froggie

Froggie — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 17:23:31 +0000

The 2000 version of the FIHS (Florida Intrastate Highway System) Model Plan identified the need to extend the FL Turnpike northwestward to US 19/98 near Lebanon as a 20-year need (needed by 2020). The Turnpike extension was taken out by 2004.

By: Gantrification

Gantrification — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 08:08:00 +0000

What if the Turnpike never would have met I-75? I guess Disney wouldn’t have settled there! (He liked the intersection of I-4 and the Tpk.)