Interstate 95 in Florida

Infobox road
state=FL
route=95
type=I


alternate_name=
maint=
length_mi=382.083
length_round=2
length_ref=
year_established=1957
direction_a=South
terminus_a=jct|state=FL|US|1 in Miami
junction=jct|state=FL|I|395 in Miami
jct|state=FL|I|195 in Miami
jct|state=FL|I|595 in Fort Lauderdale
jct|state=FL|SR|528 near Cocoa
jct|state=FL|I|4near Daytona Beach
jct|state=FL|I|295 in Jacksonville
jct|state=FL|I|10 in Jacksonville
jct|state=FL|I|295 in Jacksonville
direction_b=North
terminus_b=jct|state=GA|I|95 near St. Marys, GA
previous_type=
previous_route=
next_type=
next_route=
Interstate 95 (officially The Singer Expressway in Miami-Dade County) [Laws of Florida Chapter 61-1208] , the main Interstate Highway on the east coast of the United States, serves the Atlantic coast of Florida. It begins at a partial interchange with U.S. Highway 1 just south of downtown Miami, and heads north past Daytona Beach and Jacksonville to the Georgia state line at the St. Marys River.

The southernmost 13.69 [http://www.dot.state.fl.us/planning/statistics/gis/default.htm FDOT GIS data] ] miles (22.03 km) of I-95, from Miami to the north side of the Golden Glades Interchange, is the unsigned State Road 9A. (There is another State Road 9A forming a beltway around Jacksonville.) The rest of I-95 is part of unsigned State Road 9, which splits at the Golden Glades Interchange and heads southwest and south on surface roads to end southwest of downtown Miami. (SR 9 is only signed south of the Golden Glades Interchange.)

Route description

Interstate 95 splits from U.S. Highway 1 near 32nd Road in southern Miami. It quickly interchanges with the Rickenbacker Causeway via the short unsigned SR 913, and then heads north into downtown. The short SR 970 freeway, mostly unsigned, distributes traffic to several downtown streets. On the north side of downtown, at the Midtown Interchange, Interstate 395 heads east to the MacArthur Causeway, and the tolled SR 836 heads west to Miami International Airport. Throughout Miami-Dade County, I-95 is designated the North-South Expressway according to some maps. [Rand McNally 2006 Road Atlas]

After crossing I-395 and SR 836, I-95 begins to head north roughly along the alignment of Northwest 6th Avenue, lying one block east of Northwest 7th Avenue (U.S. Highway 441/SR 7). Just north of 36th Street (U.S. Highway 27/SR 25), at what has been called the 36th Street Interchange, [Florida Department of Transportation, General Highway Map, Dade County, Florida, September 1972 (reprinted January 1980)] I-95 crosses Interstate 195, which goes east over the Julia Tuttle Causeway to Miami Beach, and SR 112, a toll road west to the airport. A two-way high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) roadway in the median begins at I-195 and SR 112, formed by ramps to and from SR 112. I-95 continues north, crossing and interchanging with many surface roads, most of which are State Roads, before reaching the Golden Glades Interchange.

The complicated Golden Glades Interchange provides access between I-95 and two other freeways - the original section of Florida's Turnpike (SR 91), since bypassed by the Homestead Extension (SR 821), and the Palmetto Expressway (SR 826). Ramps are also provided to and from several surface streets - SR 826 east on 167th Street to Sunny Isles Beach, U.S. Highway 441 (SR 7) south on Northwest 7th Avenue and north on Northwest 2nd Avenue, and SR 9 southwest on a limited-access roadway to Northwest 27th Avenue. At the Golden Glades Interchange, SR 9A ends, and SR 9 joins I-95. I-95 north to West Palm Beach, as well as SR 9 southwest to 27th Avenue, runs parallel to the South Florida Rail Corridor, used by CSX Transportation for freight and Tri-Rail for commuter rail.

North of Miami, I-95 continues on to Ft. Lauderdale, where it interchanges with I-595, providing access to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Port Everglades to the east, and Broward County's western suburbs as well as I-75 northbound (via Alligator Alley) across the peninsula to the Gulf Coast to the west. In West Palm Beach, I-95 provides direct access to Palm Beach International Airport as well as downtown West Palm Beach and Palm Beach Island via SR 704 (Okeechobee Blvd.). North of West Palm Beach, I-95 literally runs beside Florida's Turnpike for several miles, before the freeways eventually go separate ways north of Fort Pierce (I-95 continues directly along the coast; Florida's Turnpike turns west toward Orlando).

Continuing north, I-95 provides access to State Roads 70, 60, and 50 in Ft. Pierce, Vero Beach, and Titusville, respectively; each are major east-west thoroughfares that provide access between the east and west coasts of Florida. I-95 also interchanges with the Beachline Expressway near Cape Canaveral, a toll-road providing access between the Cape and the major tourist areas in Orlando. I-95 also provides direct access to I-4 in Daytona Beach.

I-95 then continues directly through the center of downtown Jacksonville, with several major interchanges: I-295/SR 9A, several miles south of the city; I-10 just south of downtown, and I-295/SR 9A once again several miles north of the city (the two highways provide a western and eastern bypass, respectively, around the city). The Fuller Warren Bridge, which carries I-95 over the St. Johns River just south of I-10, was rebuilt in 2002, and a new intersection between I-95 and I-10 will be completed in 2011. [ [http://www.thebigi.info/schedule_status.htm project_status.gif] ] Just north of I-295, I-95 provides access to Jacksonville International Airport. From this point, I-95 continues north several miles before finally crossing into Georgia, just north of mile marker 380.

Future

The Florida Department of Transportation is currently seeking federal funding to construct express lanes along I-95 in South Florida, some of which has been procured as of January 2008 [ [http://cbs4.com/local/95.express.federal.2.627147.html cbs4.com - Federal Funds Awarded To I-95 Express Lanes ] ] . The lanes will run from approximately I-595 near Ft. Lauderdale to I-395 near downtown Miami and are aiming to be completed between summer 2008 and spring 2010 in phases [ [http://www.miamiherald.com/news/broward/story/387403.html Hybrids not ignored in I-95 plan - 01/21/2008 - MiamiHerald.com ] ] . Currently, the commute time between the Golden Glades Interchange and downtown Miami during the morning and evening rush hours can exceed 30 minutes for the approximately 9 mile stretch [http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-cexpress15xmay15,0,6136661.story] ; tolls would be collected electronically along the express route and would be increased or decreased depending on traffic flow in order to ensure a minimum speed of 50 mph in express lanes. Drivers would be allowed to enter and exit the express lanes at 5 points along the route. Additionally, registered carpools, transit buses, and drivers of hybrid vehicles will be able to use the lanes at no charge [ [http://www.miamiherald.com/news/broward/story/387403.html Hybrids not ignored in I-95 plan - 01/21/2008 - MiamiHerald.com ] ] .

Exit list

References

External links

* [http://www.southeastroads.com/i-095_fl.html Interstate 95 Florida -- SouthEastRoads.com(AARoads)]