Toll Florida 293 north (from U.S. 98 to Florida 20):

Florida 293 begins its ascent northward from U.S. 98 in the eastern portion of Destin. It begins as a six-lane arterial, but quickly loses lanes to become a two lane corridor by the time it reaches the Mid-Bay bridge over Choctawhatchee Bay. This reassurance marker is the only one in the entire northwest region that displays the orange outline of Florida, often seen on other toll facilities in other parts of the state.

Currently, motorists pay a $3.00 toll for the Mid-Bay bridge crossing. The toll plaza is just over 5-miles away along the north shore of Choctawhatchee Bay. The traffic signal in the background allows access to the commercial centers that align either side of Florida 293.

Florida 293 prepares to lose the first lane to the access road along the northern boundary of Destin Commons, the commercial power center that encompasses the land at the northeast corner of the intersection with Florida 293 and U.S. 98. The final lanes merge into one at the entrance to Legendary Marina along the bay.

Becoming a two lane facility, Florida 293 prepares to cross over Choctawhatchee Bay via the 3.6 mile long Mid-Bay bridge. Provisions are in place to build a twin span east of and adjacent to the existing structure as funding permits.

The Mid-Bay bridge crosses over Choctawhatchee Bay and the Intracoastal Waterway. The bridge is low-level for the majority of its crossing with the exception of the high-span crossing over the Intracoastal Waterway channel.

Descending from the apex of the bridge span, Florida 293 approaches the northern shores of Choctawhatchee Bay and the outer reaches of Niceville. The toll plaza for the bridge follows immediately after the Mid-Bay bridge.

As part of the construction of the first phase of the Mid-Bay Connector, an approach to the east of the existing bridge was constructed for the future expansion of the Mid-Bay bridge. Once a twin span is in place, the existing bridge will carry southbound traffic while the new span will carry northbound traffic.

The existing toll plaza was also expanded during the construction of the initial phase of the Mid-Bay Connector. Two additional lanes were added to the east of the existing toll plaza to accommodate future traffic volumes, and facilitate northbound traffic. All lanes except SunPass while the left-most lane is strictly for SunPass users.

Barricades currently block access to the old alignment of Florida 293 along White Point Road. Prior to the opening of the first phase, traffic turned northwest following White Point Road up to Florida 20 near the Bluewater Bay development. Plans are in place to permanently cut off access of White Point Road to Florida 293 in the near future and for the state to relinquish control back to the county for road maintenance.

Now along the recently opened alignment, Florida 293 makes its way northward toward its new temporary terminus at Florida 20 about 1.5 miles ahead. The current speed limit north of the toll plaza to Florida 20 is posted at 45 mph. Curbing lines both sides of the roadway until the first interchange with Lakeshore Drive. Also note the use of a non-toll reassurance marker for the new alignment of Florida 293.

Approaching the first interchange at Lakeshore Drive. This diamond interchange was constructed for motorist wishing to gain access to White Point Road and the nearby subdivisions lying to the west of the new limited access highway. Heading south along Lakeshore Drive takes you to a small subdivision along the northern shores of Pippin Lake.

Due to the proximity of the interchanges, Florida 293 briefly gains an auxiliary lane to accommodate future traffic. Barricades are currently in place to move motorists into one lane as the temporary terminus with Florida 20 is fast approaching.

All traffic must exit onto the off ramp for the SPUI with Florida 20. No permanent signage was in place at the time of opening so vertical message boards are being used to guide motorists at the interchanges until signage can be placed. The remaining segment of Phase I will open Florida 293 up to Range Road later this summer. It is not currently known whether the new toll facility will have exit numbers at its interchanges or not.

Approaching the intersection with Florida 20 near the end of the off ramp for Florida 293. Trailblazers have been erected to alert motorists on which direction Interstate 10 can be reached. From this particular intersection, motorists can access the interstate either by heading west into Niceville and taking either Florida 285 or Florida 85. Heading east on Florida 20 will take motorists to Freeport where motorists can take U.S. 331 north to reach the interstate near Defuniak Springs. Also note the use of state-named shields for Interstate 10, a rarity in the state.

Florida 293 south (between Florida 20 and Lakeshore Drive):

Heading southward from the SPUI with Florida 20, Florida 293 quickly approaches its final interchange before encountering the toll plaza for the Mid-Bay bridge.

Motorists not wishing to pay the $3.00 toll to cross the Mid-Bay bridge exit here at the diamond interchange with Lakeshore Drive. This local road connects the newly opened limited access highway with White Point Road, the former alignment of Florida 293.

Scenes pertaining to Florida 293:

A trailblazer directing motorists onto Toll Florida 293 south (though at time taken the arrow was not in place). Note the use of a black on white TOLL banner in place of using the new standard of black on yellow, or for that matter, Florida's standard toll shield.

Signage previously used for the intersection with White Point Road (now former Florida 293) has been moved to the new SPUI. It is not currently known if this signage is going to be temporary or if this is indeed permanent.

Map of Niceville showing the under construction and proposed alignment of the extension of Toll Florida 293 around the eastern and northern portions of the city. The toll route will eventually end at a trumpet interchange with Florida 85 about a mile north of College Drive.

Future Florida 85/Florida 123 Interchange improvements:

A guide sign with an older style Florida 123 shield lets motorists know of the impending departure. Since a lot of traffic (regular and military) uses Florida 123 as a short-cut to get to Florida 85 northwest of Niceville, a well extended three-quarters of a mile left-turn lane exists to allow motorists the necessary room to queue for the turn. During peak hours in the afternoon this extended turn lane often fills quickly, and at times past capacity.

Northbound traffic along Florida 85 continues through a static green signal while traffic departing for Florida 123 north must wait for their phase of movement. The wait here can often get long during the afternoon peak as commuters leave from the Fort Walton Beach and Eglin areas heading toward Crestview and beyond. The abutments and pier of future Florida 123 north are in place awaiting the installation of the beams.

A much shorter entrance to the Northwest Florida Regional Airport is now in place due the construction at Florida 123. An interchange at the eastern end of the airport is planned as part of this project, allowing motorists from Florida 123 south to access the airport without having to cross Florida 85 traffic. A new entrance ramp to the airport will also be constructed along Florida 85 north.

Traffic along Florida 85 north is shifted to allow adequate room to work on the future interchange with Northwest Florida Regional Airport. Once complete, Florida 85 will fly over an airport access road. Southbound traffic is also shifted onto a portion of the future access road that will one day serve traffic movements between Florida 123 and the airport.

Southbound Florida 123 approaching its southern terminus with Florida 85, the north bridge abutment of the future flyover for Florida 123 north comes into view. Initial pavement has been laid on the north abutment and is awaiting the final construction of the flyover across Florida 85 and completion of the south abutment before traffic can be moved onto its new alignment.

Future Toll Florida 293 construction at various locations:

Support beams have been driven into the ground for the future overpass of Florida 293 over Range Road. The initial overpass will carry northbound and southbound traffic with a dual overpass being contructed as traffic demands increase.

The first phase of the Florida 293 toll extension will end here at Range Road, about a mile north of Florida 20 at what will be a future diamond interchange. The limited access highway will open to Range Road in mid summer.

Looking north along Range Road at Phase 2 of the Florida 293 toll extension. Clearing for this portion of the extension commenced in late January/early February. This phase of the project will consist of construction of Florida 293 as a super-2 with a grade separated interchange at Florida 285, along with one at-grade intersection with an extended Forest Road. An open-road toll plaza will be erected between Range Road and Forest Road, allowing motorists the opportunity to continue on without having to stop and pay a toll. For those without Sunpass (Florida's toll collecting program) license plates will be scanned instead, as a part of the Toll-By-Plate program being initated by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise.

Heading east along Florida 20 at the future SPUI (single-point urban interchange) with Florida 293. The four-lane limited access highway will pass over Florida 20 as it begins its bypass around east Niceville. The first phase of the project will realign Florida 293 along a new right-of-way around Niceville, eventually ending with Florida 85 at a trumpet interchange north of town. As a part of the extension project, a portion of Florida 20 southeastward of the current terminus of Florida 293 to just past the interchange is being widened to a four-lane arterial. Florida 293 will open up to this interchange on Thursday, May 12, 2011 with a ribbon cutting ceremony scheduled for 9am.

As construction at the interchange progresses, traffic patterns along Florida 20 have changed and a 25 MPH speed limit has been implemented through the interchange area.

A view of the clearing of the future brief extension of Forest Road to Florida 293. This will be the only at-grade intersection along the toll extension, allowing residents of nearby subdivisions along Forest Road and College Road direct access to the future highway. This is also the terminus of Phase 2 of the proposed route around Niceville. It is not currently slated to become an interchange, but perhaps as traffic demands increase an interchange will be proposed at this location.

Looking east at the future alignment of Florida 293 along Florida 285 about one-quater mile north of College Road. A diamond interchange is planned at this location and is part of Phase 3 of the limited-access highway around Niceville.

Extensive clearing has been done for the portion of Florida 293 between Florida 285 and Florida 85. This portion of Phase 3 will see the extension further west to a trumpet interchange with Florida 85, with no other access points between the two state routes.

Clearing has also began along Florida 85 north where future Florida 293 will intersect the route. The extension of the toll road will end here once complete, with the provision of extending it southwestward toward Fort Walton Beach and west toward Navarre as part of a proposed (and long debated) toll facility to aleviate traffic along the often clogged U.S. 98. Whether this proposed extension westward happens in the next 10 to 20 years remains to be seen. With factors such as current economic conditions looming, disagreements on a final alignment of the route, and final funding issues continue, the prospects of the toll facility reaching further west become more and more doubtful.

All above photos were taken on 04/08/2011 by ABRoads.

So that means for all those motorists who are currently using the 25 cent toll ramps, beginning in April you will start paying double. To some that may not seem like much but when you break it down quarter by quarter it starts adding up real quick, especially if you use the toll roads everyday. That also means motorists on expressways such as the Beachline (Toll Florida 528) are going to get screwed as well as a portion of that facility is also maintained by the OOCEA, more specifically the portion that runs directly north of the Orlando International Airport. I imagine even more motorists will avoid that specific toll plaza (as it can be done and I purposely have done it many times). Not that I took the toll roads much, but if I did need to get across town in a hurry and didn’t feel like using the congested arterials or Interstate 4, I would use them.

So, once again, thanks to this wonderful recession that we are currently in, an agency of the government gets to pass the buck onto you.

Yep, so glad I don’t live there anymore…

Reassurance assembly for both Alabama 55 and Florida 85 just south of the intersection with US 331 in Florala, Alabama

I believe that the ‘SOUTH’ banner for Florida 85 should instead be a trailblazer showing ‘TO’ Florida 85, but never the less, it is signed as if it is actually cosigned along with Alabama 55 heading south into Florida. So, for all intents and purposes according to the signage, Florida 85 begins its 57 mile trek toward Fort Walton Beach at the intersection with US 331 in downtown Florala, not at the state line. It is cosigned with Alabama 55 south to the state line where the Alabama state designation ends, though there is no ‘END’ shield assembly, and continues on into Florida. This is, though, another good example of an erroneous sign error made by DOT’s and sign companies across the country. Way to go ALDOT.

U.S. 98 to Change

December 19, 2008

Several safety upgrades to U.S. 98 at Mustang and Coral streets in Navarre, will be made in the new year, according to the Santa Rosa County Engineering Department.

Santa Rosa County spokeswoman Joy Tsubooka said Improvements include closing the median opening on U.S. 98 at Mustang Street; removing the U.S. 98 westbound left-turn lane at Mustang Street; construction of a new paved median opening on U.S. 98 at Coral Street; and construction of an eastbound left-turn lane on U.S. 98 at Coral Street.

Construction is scheduled to begin Jan. 5 and is anticipated to be completed in about 30 days, Tsubooka said.

The improvements on U.S. 98 are safety upgrades recommended in the U.S. Highway 98 Corridor Management Report and are part of a planned Santa Rosa County project to install a traffic signal on U.S. 98 at Coral Street in late spring or early summer.

http://www.pnj.com/article/20081219/NEWS01/81219021

By the way, this will be the third traffic light installed since moving here in the middle of November.   So much for having just a few traffic lights in the area…

Well, the masterminds over at Google Maps have done it again. Upon going on Google Maps on Monday night, it was discovered that one of their features, Street View, has been drastically modified. First off, Street View can now take up your entire screen, whereas the previous version displayed it in a pop-up window. Second, there is now more extensive coverage, especially in rural areas in the southeast. So, one might think, wow, this is great news! Thanks, Google!

Photo from Google Maps, copyrighted 2008

Well, from a roadgeek’s standpoint (meaning mine) this is NOT great news. Now thanks to the enhanced Street View, one can virtually go on road trips without ever leaving the comfort of their own home. So you want to take some back roads over in the Tallahassee area, well, just go on the PC or laptop, go to Google Maps, find your area, drag the little Street View icon onto the road you want, and away you go!

I personally feel that this enhanced mapping product is going to be the end all to end all for some roadgeeks out there. For some, no, but for others who are not as inclined to jump in a car and take a trip due to the current state of the economy, yes. They will no longer have to spend money on gas to take a road trip. Nope, they can go just about anywhere from their living room. For any roadgeeks in Florida they no longer have to drive endlessly trying to find that one last colored U.S. Highway shield or that Key shield. With just a couple of clicks and pans with the mouse, you can check out most intersections in Florida now and see if those rare but cherished road markers are in place.

Granted, there are still some flaws with Street View, such as the resolution in some areas, the age of the photography used (most is still at least a year behind, if not more), the fact that they travel east in the morning and west in the evening so the sun is in full view and you can’t see anything of importance, the problem areas where the road numbers and road names are STILL incorrect, and the fact that they still do not have Street View in all areas, but the Google guys are probably working hard to resolve those issues.

Needless to say, it’s my personal belief that Google Maps is well on its way, if not already there, to replacing the exploration and fun in roadding. When one sits at the computer and virtually roads where ever they want, you lose that aspect of maybe finding some rare piece of road history or that rare sign that should no longer exist when you can go online and see it before actually field checking. I understand some may not agree with me on this and may feel that this updated Street View on Google Maps is yet another tool in the roadding tool belt, and that is fine. I do agree that it could be, but I strongly feel that it is NOT an end all to end all. But for me personally, I still love the aspect of actually getting in my car, driving somewhere and stumbling across some rare colored Florida U.S. Highway shield or that old alignment alongside a new roadbed.

As I said, this is my personal opinion, so any comments on this are suggested and welcomed by my fellow roadgeeks.

This portion of Pine Island Road desperately needs to be four laned as it is a major hurricane evacuation route for those on Pine Island as well as those in the northwest portion of the Cape. Currently, there is no state money to fund the construction until after 2014. But if Aubuchon’s bill passes next spring construction can begin in 18 months to two years.

This is not the first time this particular project has been on a bill to be fast tracked. It was part of a bill that was vetoed in June 2008 by Governor Charlie Crist. But Aubuchon sees no such problems with next years bill.

Most Cape city officials are in favor of this bond as it will pave the way for future development on the final untouched stretch of Pine Island Road. Current plans for commercial development along this stretch include a Super Wal-Mart and a million square foot shopping mall, both of which have been in the plans for several years but are contingent on the widening of this particular stretch of Pine Island Road.

Both of these signs are located along Florida 70 (one per direction) in Okeechobee County.

The real beast is I-75, which is becoming very congested and dangerous.  Perhaps the reason why US 19/98 doesn’t have much traffic is because of the way to get there.  Both SR 44 and US 27 Alt have towns to pass through (Bronson, Willison, Inverness, etc.), which to most people is a hassle that they want to avoid completely.  Would a Turnpike extension to the Lebanon area clear some traffic away from I-75 now or in 20 years?  Also consider hurricane evacuations.  What about a Turnpike extension to Tallahassee?  That’s probably not viable now, but just how wide can I-75 be, and how much of that is long distance traffic? 

Have you heard about this group? It was created by the 2005 Florida Legislature and consists of an eight member board
including a member from each coastal county within the Panhandle. Their agenda is the planning of future transportation needs along the U.S. 98 corridor and feeder/connector routes to the north.

There’s a number of projects included in their Master Plan found at
http://www.nwftca.com/html/home/NFTCA-Adopted-Master-Plan-2007-04-09.pdf

Notable ones:
North Pensacola Beltway – a freeway from U.S. 90 near AL state line to U.S. 90/FL 87/I-10 at Milton

New Pensacola Bay Bridge – Pensacola Airport to FL 281 !!??

Garcon Point Bridge – four lane (noone uses it because of the astronomical toll)

FL 281 – four lane from new Bay Bridge to I-10

Navarre Bypass – a freeway from FL 87 to Fort Walton Beach/Niceville Bypass

Fort Walton Beach/Niceville Bypass – a freeway from Navarre Bypass to Mid-Bay Bridge Extension

Mid-Bay Bridge Extension – construct freeway from Mid-bay Bridge to north of Florida 20; this ties into the Niceville-Freeport Connector, a freeway leading north US 331, which is to be four-laned to Interstate 10.

West Bay Bypass – freeway from US 98 to Freeport

Freeport-West Bay Connector – freeway from FL 77 to U.S. 331 at Freeport

Complete interchange of US 98 at Thomas Drive (Bay County 3031). Presently only the eastbound half is open, with U.S. 98 attaining limited access standards from Front Beach Road eastward to the end of the Hathaway Bridge.

Approaching U.S. 98 on Florida 30 (former U.S. 98 Alternate) eastbound in Panama City Beach. Eastbound travelers ascend onto a viaduct over Thomas Drive directly to the Hathaway Bridge. The westbound segment of the viaduct remains unconstructed.

U.S. 98 at 23rd Street – new interchange between the two roadways in west Panama City.

The beginning of the new U.S. 98 alignment in Gulf County. Windmark Beach represents a mixed-used community that will be built over the original U.S. 98 coastal alignment. Check out the siteplan and note that the original U.S. 98 alignment originally traveled along the coast (we have photos of this from 2006 in the queue for what it’s worth). 

Additional studying is underway on the potential relocation of U.S. 98 inland to bypass the Franklin County coast. The present two lane alignment hugs the coastline from Apalachicola northeastward. Current work focuses on erosion control
throughout the entire coastal routing within the county.