Interstates 175, 275 and 375 in Florida

[Max Rockatansky]

Took a day drive excursion around today Tampa Bay today.  That being the case I did photo clinch I-275, I-375 and I-175.  My photo albums are below:

I-275

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmzc5oki

I-375

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmx1tsuc

I-175

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm8kTCmP

[kevinb1994]

Took a day drive excursion around Tampa Bay today.  That being the case I did photo clinch I-275, I-375 and I-175.  My photo albums are below:

I-275

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmzc5oki

I-375

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmx1tsuc

I-175

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm8kTCmP

[Life in Paradise]

I guess I should pay closer attention to the map insets.  I didn't know 175 and 375 existed.  They appear to be poor use for a 3-d name, but Florida got it approved.

[The Ghostbuster]

How much traffic uses 175 and 375 on a daily basis? Would St. Petersburg congestion be worse in the area if the twin Interstate spurs didn't exist?

[adventurernumber1]

Thank you very much for posting all of those photos! 

They look great! I have never had the opportunity to go to the Tampa area (although I have been to Orlando), but I hope to be able to go there sometime in the future. I absolutely love those white rounded gantries at some of those spots near downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg. They have a really neat look, and they are quite intriguing to me. It is also very nice to see the beautiful Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which is a favorite of mine in the area.

[NE2]

What's up dick see highway?

[kevinb1994]

What's up spotted dick highway?

[Max Rockatansky]

How much traffic uses 175 and 375 on a daily basis? Would St. Petersburg congestion be worse in the area if the twin Interstate spurs didn't exist?

I've never seem either of them with high volumes of traffic, even when attending games at Tropicana Field.  I suspect if neither was there they wouldn't be missed.  Essentially 175 and 375 are just glorified on-ramps in present configuration.

[D-Dey65]

Both had proposed extensions.

[Max Rockatansky]

Finally started to get caught up creating blog posts for all the Florida photos.  Just finished the I-275 blog post:

https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2019/01/interstate-275.html

Incidentally, does anyone know the reasoning why I-75 was shifted onto a bypass route?  It would seem more logical to me to have I-275 east of Tampa Bay and have the parent traverse Tampa/St. Petersburg.

[kevinb1994]

Finally started to get caught up creating blog posts for all the Florida photos.  Just finished the I-275 blog post:

https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2019/01/interstate-275.html

Incidentally, does anyone know the reasoning why I-75 was shifted onto a bypass route?  It would seem more logical to me to have I-275 east of Tampa Bay and have the parent traverse Tampa/St. Petersburg.

I believe this was done as a result of the major improvements needed at the time to improve and maintain the original route of I-75 through Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties.

[sparker]

Finally started to get caught up creating blog posts for all the Florida photos.  Just finished the I-275 blog post:

https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2019/01/interstate-275.html

Incidentally, does anyone know the reasoning why I-75 was shifted onto a bypass route?  It would seem more logical to me to have I-275 east of Tampa Bay and have the parent traverse Tampa/St. Petersburg.

Can't fathom the actual 75 vs. 275 decision except that the Sunshine Skyway bridge is tolled, whereas the I-75 east metro bypass is not.  Apparently in the '70's the southern extension of I-75 was originally to follow the path now occupied by I-275, and the eastern bypass was to be I-75E -- but the anti-suffix rule came about in the interim and the current scheme was adopted.  Otherwise, who knows what influenced the decision-making process within FDOT 40+ years ago (and whether AASHTO had any input into the process).  But also remember this occurred at about the time the ship hit the original Skyway bridge and put one of the spans out of commission; perhaps no one wanted that to happen again on the main through route (although the bridge was later supplanted by a cable-stayed span), so it may have been decided to place I-75 on (semi-) dry land!

[Max Rockatansky]

^^^

I suspect the original Skyway Bridge taking 7 years to be replaced played a huge factor but nonetheless the constant switching is strange.  Even I-4 (in my opinion) would make a better designation than I-275 given it is a 2d number.

Speaking of strange, finished up my blog posts for I-375 and I-175.  Both routes are very weird given their short length but the terminus points are more intriguing simply due to the strange nature of US 19A/US 92 ending at each other.  The western terminus of US 92 always bothered me since it would be more logical to route it either back to the US 19 mainline or south on FL 687 to I-175.  Either way it is odd that US 19A exists past it's parent route rather than ending in a loop at it. 

https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2019/01/interstate-375-and-interstate-175.html

[Ace10]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

[Max Rockatansky]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

Hit on that in the I-275 blog briefly.  Always thought it was weird that the older State Road designation was kept when I-75 shifted

[Flint1979]

How much traffic uses 175 and 375 on a daily basis? Would St. Petersburg congestion be worse in the area if the twin Interstate spurs didn't exist?

I've never seem either of them with high volumes of traffic, even when attending games at Tropicana Field.  I suspect if neither was there they wouldn't be missed.  Essentially 175 and 375 are just glorified on-ramps in present configuration.

That's not the only I-375 that wouldn't be missed if it was taken out.

[Flint1979]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

That's interesting. I always thought that I-275 and I-75 in the Tampa area were suppose to be the other way around with I-75 going through Tampa and St. Petes and I-275 using the bypass.

[Max Rockatansky]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

That's interesting. I always thought that I-275 and I-75 in the Tampa area were suppose to be the other way around with I-75 going through Tampa and St. Petes and I-275 using the bypass.

Even before I-75 the route to St. Petersburg was part of I-4.  I believe the exit numbering signage was only fairly recently changed from the Old I-4 convention on I-275. 

Speaking of I-375 in Detroit, is it still the plan to convert that to a Parkway?

[Flint1979]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

That's interesting. I always thought that I-275 and I-75 in the Tampa area were suppose to be the other way around with I-75 going through Tampa and St. Petes and I-275 using the bypass.

Even before I-75 the route to St. Petersburg was part of I-4.  I believe the exit numbering signage was only fairly recently changed from the Old I-4 convention on I-275. 

Speaking of I-375 in Detroit, is it still the plan to convert that to a Parkway?

I don't feel like looking anything up but I'm thinking that maybe the originally planned southern terminus of I-75 was going to be located there so that could be possible too. I don't know too much about I-75 in Florida.

Last I heard anything regarding I-375 in Detroit was in late 2017 and that was to dismantle I-375 and turn it into a boulevard. I wish they would just do it and get it over with. I-375 is pretty useless and the route there would better serve downtown a whole lot better.

[Max Rockatansky]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

That's interesting. I always thought that I-275 and I-75 in the Tampa area were suppose to be the other way around with I-75 going through Tampa and St. Petes and I-275 using the bypass.

Even before I-75 the route to St. Petersburg was part of I-4.  I believe the exit numbering signage was only fairly recently changed from the Old I-4 convention on I-275. 

Speaking of I-375 in Detroit, is it still the plan to convert that to a Parkway?

I don't feel like looking anything up but I'm thinking that maybe the originally planned southern terminus of I-75 was going to be located there so that could be possible too. I don't know too much about I-75 in Florida.

Last I heard anything regarding I-375 in Detroit was in late 2017 and that was to dismantle I-375 and turn it into a boulevard. I wish they would just do it and get it over with. I-375 is pretty useless and the route there would better serve downtown a whole lot better.

That will be interesting to see if 375 in Detroit ever gets a Road diet.  Regarding I-75 the original terminus was at I-4 in Tampa at Malfunction Junction.  I-4 was apparently legislatively adopted to cross the Skyway Bridge but never did.  I assume that I-75 was as well when it was extended to St. Petersburg in 1971 but the 73 designation of 275 is an oddity considering the 1980 freighter crash was a ways away. 

[Flint1979]

Interestingly, State Road 93, the hidden designation for much of I-75 in Florida, actually follows I-275 instead of I-75. Between I-275's termini, I-75 is hidden State Road 93A. This harkens back to when I-75 was signed along what is now I-275. Just a fun fact I thought I'd throw out there.

That's interesting. I always thought that I-275 and I-75 in the Tampa area were suppose to be the other way around with I-75 going through Tampa and St. Petes and I-275 using the bypass.

Even before I-75 the route to St. Petersburg was part of I-4.  I believe the exit numbering signage was only fairly recently changed from the Old I-4 convention on I-275. 

Speaking of I-375 in Detroit, is it still the plan to convert that to a Parkway?

I don't feel like looking anything up but I'm thinking that maybe the originally planned southern terminus of I-75 was going to be located there so that could be possible too. I don't know too much about I-75 in Florida.

Last I heard anything regarding I-375 in Detroit was in late 2017 and that was to dismantle I-375 and turn it into a boulevard. I wish they would just do it and get it over with. I-375 is pretty useless and the route there would better serve downtown a whole lot better.

That will be interesting to see if 375 in Detroit ever gets a Road diet.  Regarding I-75 the original terminus was at I-4 in Tampa at Malfunction Junction.  I-4 was apparently legislatively adopted to cross the Skyway Bridge but never did.  I assume that I-75 was as well when it was extended to St. Petersburg in 1971 but the 73 designation of 275 is an oddity considering the 1980 freighter crash was a ways away.

It might happen now who knows. I personally would like to see several freeways near downtown Detroit redesigned.