A five level interchange joins the Sawgrass Expressway with Interstate 75 and the Port Everglades Expressway above SR 84 in Sunrise.
State Road 869 follows the Sawgrass Expressway, a bypass and commuter route around urban Broward County, and a 3.18 mile portion of SW 10th Street through the city of Deerfield Beach. Operated by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE), the Sawgrass Expressway is a 20.81 mile toll road extending north from Interstate 75 at the exchange with I-595 (Port Everglades Expressway) at Davie and Weston to Florida's Turnpike at Coconut Creek. The six lane expressway separates wide open expanses of Everglades Wildlife Management Area with suburban development at Sunrise, Tamarac and Coral Springs. Turning east between Parkland and Coral Springs, SR 869 extends to U.S. 441 and Florida's Turnpike, where it transitions to an at-grade arterial along SW 10th Street. The state road concludes at Interstate 95, with SW 10th Street continuing east to U.S. 1 and the Hillsboro River.
Florida State Road 869 Guides
State Road 869 (Sawgrass Expressway) was proposed in 1969 as the University-Deerfield Expressway. The corridor was adjusted to align with the planned route of Interstate 75 between Davie and Weston and the Port Everglades Expressway (I-595) west from Plantation in 1977. Renamed the Sawgrass Expressway, groundbreaking for construction of the toll road took place on November 2, 1984. The Expressway was built in 16 months, opening to traffic on July 3, 1986.
The Sawgrass Expressway grew in popularity, especially as the area bounded by the toll road developed with new homes, shopping centers and other amenities. The initial toll rate of $1.50 per passenger vehicle was seen as expensive, especially when compared to 25 cent rates charged on some facilities in Miami-Dade County. However the utility of SR 869 as an alternate route and as a bypass around the Fort Lauderdale area eventually brought traffic.
The only missing link in SR 869 was the connection to Interstate 95. An attempt to complete the link was made in the 1980s. However that effort was derailed by the Century Village retirement community. The connection remained in discussion by county planners, eventually leading to the SW 10th Street Connector. Governor Rick Scott announced that funding was secured for the $766 million project on August 22, 2018. With the design phase already underway, the announcement indicated that construction will begin four years earlier than anticipated, starting in 2021.1
- "Gov. Rick Scott discusses funding plans for Southwest 10th Street connector." WPLG TV-10 (Pembroke Park, FL), August 22, 2018.
Historical information for the Sawgrass Expressway originally researched by Justin Cozart and Jason Learned. Previously posted on TropicalTurnpikes.com, it was reproduced with permission by Justin Cozart.
Connect with:
Interstate 75
Interstate 95
Interstate 595 - Port Everglades Expressway
Florida's Turnpike
U.S. 441
Page Updated 05-14-2019.