Interstate 795 Florida
Overview
Florida State Road 9B provides a cut-off between I-95 in northern St. Johns County and the Interstate 295 East Beltway at Southside Jacksonville. Opening up additional land for development, including Durbin Pavilion and the Batram Park Preserve subdivision, the commuter freeway also spurs south from I-95 to St. Johns Parkway.
Discussion in 2012 included the possibility of resigning SR 9B as Interstate 795 upon completion of the link with I-95.1 That will not be the case until the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District Two submits a formal application to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) for Interstate status along the entire SR 9B freeway.2
Construction of the I-295 Express Lanes from I-95 to SR 202 (J. Turner Butler / JTB Boulevard) modified the northern exchange connecting SR 9B with the East Beltway. Work added a new overpass and ramp from SR 9B to the northbound express lanes and rebuilt the SR 9B southbound ramp from I-295 to accommodate a third lane for the express lanes. The $139.9 million I-295 Express Lanes project started in Summer 2016 and ran through Summer 2019 Fall 2020 Fall 2022.3
History
History25.1 miles of SR 9A east of I-95 in Jacksonville and 4.6 miles of SR 9B from I-95 near Bayard north to SR 9A were approved as future Interstate additions by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) on August 13, 1986. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) followed up with FHWA to reaffirm the approval for both the extension of I-295 along SR 9A and the establishment of an Interstate along SR 9B on September 19, 2008. Submitted on March 27, 2009, the application sent to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) for the establishment of I-295 references the route as intersecting I-795/SR 9B (Future).
A letter dated October 12, 2010 again granted approval for the addition of State Road 9A to the Interstate System per the 1986 agreement between FHWA and FDOT. However SR 9B has yet to be added to the Interstate system, as it was not constructed by the 1986 agreement deadline of August 2011.
Construction was completed on the first phase of State Road 9B, between U.S. 1 (Philips Highway) and I-295, on September 20, 2013. Work on the initial $75 million segment started in Summer 2010. Work commenced on Phase 2 in April 2013. Including the directional cloverleaf interchange with I-95, the $95 million project concluded on June 2016, with the southbound lanes opening to traffic on June 12 and the northbound lanes two days later.4
https://twitter.com/LesleyJDavidson/status/742717014700109825
Extending SR 9B southward to County Road 2209 (St. Johns Parkway), Phase 3 started on September 8, 2015. The $79.76 million project included construction of a single point urban interchange (SPUI) with Peyton Parkway, a new one mile connector linking SR 9B with Race Track Road. The 2.3 mile segment of SR 9B was fully opened to traffic in August 2018.5
Route Information
North End – Jacksonville, FL
South End – St. Johns, FL
Mileage – 8.3
Cities – Jacksonville
- Junctions –
Source: FDOT District 2 – Active Projects web site
2019 FDOT SLDs attribute 7.077 miles to SR 9B. This does not include the roadways north of the gore at the wye interchange with I-295.
State Road 9B Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT)
| Location | Vehicles per day |
|---|---|
| St. Johns Pkwy to I-95 | 30,000 |
| I-95 to US 1 | 40,000 |
| US 1 to I-295 | 50,500 |
Source: 2018 AADT Florida Traffic Online (FDOT)
As originally proposed, SR 9B was to end at wye interchanges at both ends, with a lone interchange at U.S. 1 (Philips Highway). The diamond interchange with E-Town Parkway was constructed in 2014-15 to accommodate development planned from SR 9B northward to R.G. Skinner Parkway along side I-295. The initial 0.6 mile long segment of E-Town parkway preceded work on the 569-lot Cypress Bluff project.6
Photo Guides
Photo GuidesNorth End 
– Southside, Jacksonville, Florida
North at 
SR 9B north defaults onto Interstate 295 north at a wye interchange. 09/22/14
South at
Florida State Road 9B separates from I-295 southbound via Left Exit 58 in 2.5 miles. 09/25/22
Interstate 295 advances one mile south to SR 9B between protected wetland areas to the west and suburban development to the east. 09/25/22
Interstate 295 turns 2.8 miles west from SR 9B at Exit 58 across Southside Jacksonville to the systems exchange with I-95. 09/25/22
Interstate 295 turns 2.8 miles west from SR 9B at Exit 58 across Southside Jacksonville to the systems exchange with I-95. 09/25/22
Throwback
I-295 southbound was expanded to four lanes with the addition of the Express lanes leading to SR 9B (Left Exit 58). 06/16/16
South End 
St. Johns Parkway – St. Johns, Florida
St. Johns Parkway – St. Johns, Florida South at 
SR 9B concludes a half mile south of the SPUI with Peyton Parkway. 11/06/19
Two lanes continue from SR 9B onto CR 2209 (St. Johns Parkway) southbound to CR 210. 11/06/19
Separate ramps wind northward from SR 9B to St. Johns Parkway at unincorporated St. Johns. The freeway ends at milepost 7 and CR 2209 south. 11/06/19
North at
County Road 2209 (St. Johns Parkway) stems 1.25 miles north from a commercialized intersection with County Road 210 to SR 9B. 10/06/18
A pedestrian bridge spans St. Johns Parkway at the separation with SR 9B to Jacksonville. 10/06/18
South at
Heading south from Longleaf Pine Parkway and St. Johns, CR 2209 (St. Johns Parkway) approaches the connecting ramp for SR 9B north. 10/06/18
A signalized left turn takes motorists from CR 2209 south onto the ramp for SR 9B north and a succeeding traffic light. 10/06/18
Sources:
- “9A is steadily becoming the I-295 Beltway.” The Florida Times-Union, March 12, 2012.
- Email response from FDOT on the status of the I-795 designation, dated June 28, 2016.
http://northfloridaexpress.com/JTB/Defaulthttp://nflroads.com/ProjectDetails.aspx?p=5094http://nflroads.com/ProjectDetails.aspx?p=5044- “Florida 9B project is another milestone for Davis family.” Financial News & Daily Record, March 3, 2014.
Page updated April 10, 2023.