Interstate 4

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Interstate 4
Main route of the Interstate Highway System
Length: 132.30 mi[1] (212.92 km)
Formed: 1957
West end: I-275 in Tampa
Major
junctions:		 US 92 (numerous locations)
US 301 in Tampa
I-75 near Tampa
US 98 in Lakeland
US 27 near Davenport
US 192 in Celebration
Florida's Turnpike in Orlando
US 17/US 92/US 441 in Orlando
East end: I-95 near Daytona Beach (as I-4)
US 1 in Daytona Beach (as SR 400)
Florida State and County Roads
< SR 3 SR 4 >
< SR 399 SR 400 SR 401 >
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Interstate 4 (abbreviated I-4) is a 132.30-mile (212.91 km) intrastate Interstate Highway located entirely within the state of Florida, United States. It goes from Interstate 275 in Tampa, Florida (27.965° N 82.453° W) to Interstate 95 at Daytona Beach, Florida (29.155° N 81.076° W). It also has the Florida Department of Transportation designation of State Road 400, but only a small portion of the route is signed at the east end.

I-4 is currently the lowest-numbered Interstate Highway in the contiguous 48 U.S. states.

The combination of the Tampa, Lakeland, Orlando and Daytona Beach metropolitan areas is often referred to as the I-4 Corridor, since the freeway connects all four.

Contents

[edit] Route description

I-4 maintains a diagonal, northeast-southwest route for much of its length. Throughout most of Orange County and Seminole County, I-4 travels in a roughly north-south direction.

The route begins with an interchange with I-275 in the Tampa, St. Petersburg area and continues east toward I-75. At this point, the interstate starts a turn toward the northeast where it intersects with the Orlando area cutting the city through at a diagonal direction going northeast/southwest. The route provides access to all of Orlando's theme parks including Disney World and Universal Studios. Right before the eastern terminus, I-4 switches to a mostly east/west route in order to connect with traffic from and to I-95.

At an interchange with I-95 in Daytona Beach, I-4 terminates; however, SR 400 continues eastward into Daytona Beach. This highway eventually reaches Daytona International Airport and Daytona International Speedway.

[edit] Daytona Beach

SR 400, unsigned while concurrent with I-4, becomes signed east of I-95. The road extends for three miles (5 km) from the northeast terminus of I-4 to an intersection with U.S. Route 1 (SR 5) in Daytona Beach. Named Beville Road, it runs along the boundary between Daytona Beach and South Daytona.

[edit] History

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Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2007)
Major cities
Bolded cities are officially-designated control cities for signs

I-4 was one of the first Interstate Highways to be constructed in Florida. The first section opened between Plant City and Lakeland in 1959. In 1960/1961, the Howard Frankland Bridge opened to traffic, as well as the segment from 50th St in Tampa to Plant City. The stretch from Lake Monroe to Lake Helen also opened during that period. The segment from Lakeland to Orlando was complete by 1962. By the mid 1960s, several segments were already complete, including Malfunction Junction in Tampa and parts of I-4 through Orlando.

The original western terminus was set in South Pasadena in the late 1960s, but this plan was rejected due to local opposition. As a result, I-4 only went as far southwest as 9th St N in St. Petersburg.

The entire interstate system was completed by the late 1960s. However, the western terminus was truncated to Malfunction Junction in 1971 when I-75 was extended over the Frankland Bridge. Eventually, that stretch was again redesignated to become part of I-275.

In maps and atlases dating to the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, The Tampa/St. Petersburg section of Interstate 4/Interstate 275 was marked as the Tampa Expressway. The Orlando segment was marked as the Orlando Expressway. Both names have since faded from maps.

Although many post-1970 interchanges along I-4 were constructed before the recent widening projects, they were designed with I-4 expansion in mind. In other words, there is enough room available to widen I-4 to up to ten lanes without extensively modifying the interchanges. Some of these interchanges include the Interstate 75 stack (constructed in the 1980s) and several interchanges in Kissimmee (constructed in the late 1980s/early 1990s).

In the 2004 U.S. presidential election, the I-4 corridor, a site of significant growth, was a focus of political activity within the swing state of Florida. Communities along the I-4 corridor were perceived by both major political parties as having higher proportions of undecided voters as compared to more Republican- or Democratic-leaning portions of the state.[2]

A section of I-4 called the 'dead zone' is rumored to be haunted.[3]

[edit] Tampa area

The interchange with what is today Interstate 75 was constructed in the early 1980s.

In Tampa, the exit to 40th Street (State Road 569) has been closed since late 2005 due to the ongoing reconstruction of I-4; it will not reopen due to a proposed connector highway with the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway.[4]

The I-4/I-275 interchange (Malfunction Junction) was rebuilt from 2002 to 2006, and I-4 is under staged renovations to be widened from four to six lanes (with eight lanes in certain segments). Much of this work is complete, and all new travel lanes are now open. Eventually, I-4 will be widened again to a total of at least ten lanes (five in each direction). Studies for this project are already underway and construction should commence sometime in the 2010s. Completion of the project should be around 2020.

An old I-4 shield in Orlando.
An old I-4 shield in Orlando.

Eastbound I-4 shifted to its new, permanent alignment between Malfunction Junction and 50th St on Tuesday, August 8, 2006 at 5:30am. The new alignment includes a right-lane ramp exit/entry at the 22nd St/21st St Interchange (The previous left-lane configuration was causing hazardous conditions to commuters since its opening in 2005). On Friday, August 11, 2006, a fourth lane opened on eastbound I-4 between the downtown junction and 50th St (led in by a newly opened third lane on the eastbound I-4 ramp from northbound I-275). And on Friday, August 18, the new westbound alignment, just west of 50th Street, opened. The newly opened lanes will improve flow throughout the interchange. The 50th St overpass however, will not be complete until late 2007.[5][6][7][8] Also, the eastbound I-4 exit ramp to Columbus Drive/50th Street is situated to the left-hand side of the highway (as opposed to its former right-hand side exit). This exit shift went into effect in spring 2006 and is part of the new, permanent interstate configuration.

[edit] Orlando area

In the early/mid 1990s, several interchanges near Kissimmee were constructed/upgraded to accommodate increasing traffic going to and from Walt Disney World. However, I-4's main lanes were not widened in the process. Around the same time, the Southern Connector was extended to I-4.

The St. Johns River Veterans Memorial Bridge, a two-span six-lane replacement to the original four-lane bridge over the St. Johns River northeast of Orlando, was completed in 2004.

Tolled express lanes were being planned in the Orlando area as a traffic congestion relief technique for rush hour commuters. The name for them was to be Xpress 400, numbered after the state road designation for I-4, SR 400. However, due to U.S. Representative John Mica, they have been banned by a recently passed rider in the SAFETEA-LU Federal transportation bill in 2005.

The eastbound exit to Robinson Street (State Road 526) permanently closed at 11PM on April 25, 2006, to make way for construction of the new eastbound onramp from State Road 408.[9] The westbound offramp to Gore Street will also eventually close as part of the project.

The new overpass from I-4 west to John Young Parkway (County Road 423) opened the morning of April 27, 2006.[10][11][12]

[edit] Halifax River Bridge

There have been a number of proposals for a bridge that would carry SR 400 (Beville Road) across the Halifax River to Daytona Beach Shores. Proponents say that this would improve traffic flow and assist in hurricane evacuations, while opponents claim that a bridge would lead to congestion and environmental damage.[citation needed] Somewhat of a hot topic in the local area in the 1990s, the bridge proposal currently appears to be dormant.[citation needed]

[edit] January 9th Pileup

On January 9, 2008, 70 vehicles were involved in a large pileup on I-4 near Polk City. The pileup was caused by an unexpected thick morning fog that was mixed with a scheduled—and approved—environmental burn by the Florida Wildlife Commission. The fog drifted across I-4, mixing with the smoke, reducing visibility to near-zero conditions. Four people were killed, and 38 were injured. The section of I-4 did not re-open until 6:30pm the next day, January 10.[13]

[edit] Future

The interchange at State Road 408 is undergoing "interim improvements", which will be completed in 2009. Some of the ramps started opening in 2008.[14] The rest of the SR 408 improvements are scheduled for the next decade. Intersections at US 192[15] and I-275[16] were completed in 2007. Interstate 4 is currently also being widened in Volusia County from SR 472 to SR 44, with the intersection at SR 44 being rebuilt[17].

Planning is underway for "ultimate" improvements to Interstate 4 through Orlando.[18] These plans involve adding express lanes to the highway, and will begin construction in 2014.

[edit] Exit list

County Location Mile[19] Exit # Destinations Notes
New Old
Hillsborough Tampa 0.000 I-275 – St. Petersburg, Ocala, Tampa International Airport westbound exit and eastbound entrance
1.046 1 SR 585 (22nd Street) / 21st Street
2 (Future) I-4/Crosstown Connector south to Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway/Port of Tampa Connector construction is scheduled to begin in 2009.
3.260 3 3 US 41 / 50th Street, Columbus Drive Eastbound left exit, westbound left entrance. Eastbound right entrance and westbound right exit.
4.704 5 4 SR 574 (Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard)
5.567 6 5 Orient Road eastbound exit and westbound entrance
6.661 7 6 US 92 (Hillsborough Avenue) to US 301 – Riverview, Zephyrhills Congestion may occur on days when the state fair is on. Traffic delays on the interstate can be common with major tailbacks in either direction.
8.613 9 7 I-75 – Ocala, Naples
10.136 10 8 CR 579 / Mango Road – Mango, Thonotosassa
13.866 14 9 McIntosh Road
17.421 17 10 Branch Forbes Road
Plant City 19.507 19 11 SR 566 (Thonotosassa Road)
21.276 21 12-13 SR 39 (Buchman Highway) / Alexander Street – Zephyrhills
22.580 22 14 SR 553 (Park Road)
25.563 25 15 County Line Road
Polk Lakeland 26.541 27 15A SR 570 East (Polk Parkway) – Winter Haven, Bartow
28.128 28 16 SR 546 to US 92
30.684 31 17 SR 539 – Kathleen
31.988 32 18 US 98 – Dade City
33.421 33 19 SR 33 / CR 582
37.877 38 20 SR 33
41.195 41 20A SR 570 West (Polk Parkway) – Auburndale, Lakeland
43.960 44 21 SR 559 – Polk City, Auburndale
47.941 48 22 CR 557 – Lake Alfred, Winter Haven
54.681 55 23 US 27 – Haines City, Clermont
57.719 58 24 CR 532 – Kissimmee, Poinciana
Osceola
59.585 60 SR 429 North – Apopka
Disney World 61.747 62 24C-D-E Toll SR 417 east, World Drive – Disney World, Celebration, Sanford, International Airport
64.158 64A-B 25 US 192 – Celebration, Kissimmee, Magic Kingdom, Disney's Hollywood Studios
65.297 65 26C-D Osceola Parkway – Animal Kingdom, Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex was only 26C eastbound
Orange 66.553 67 26A-B SR 536 To SR 417 – Epcot, Downtown Disney
68.102 68 27 SR 535 – Kissimmee, Lake Buena Vista
70.932 71 27A Central Florida Parkway – Sea World eastbound exit and westbound entrance
71.682 72 28 SR 528 East (Martin Andersen Beachline Expressway) – International Airport, Cape Canaveral
73.737 74A 29 SR 482 (Sand Lake Road) was 29A westbound after 29B (current 74B) opened
73.737 74B 29B Universal westbound exit and entrance
75.032 75A-B 30A-B SR 435 (Kirkman Road) – Universal
76.363 77 31 Florida's Turnpike – Miami, Wildwood
77.774 78 31A Conroy Road
79.154 79 32 CR 423 (John Young Parkway)
80.463 80A-B 33A-B US 17 / US 92 / US 441 (Orange Blossom Trail)
81.022 81A 34 Michigan Street westbound exit and eastbound entrance
81.478 81B-C 35 Kaley Avenue was split into 35A and 35B westbound only
82.116 82A 36 Toll SR 408 (East-West Expressway)
82.235 82B 37 Gore Street (Closed permanently on February 10, 2008) westbound exit and entrance
Orlando 82.654 82C 38 Anderson Street East Temporarily Closed for construction of the new Anderson Street Bridge
82.803 83 39 South Street westbound exit and eastbound entrance
83.802 83B 41 US 17 / US 92 / SR 50 (Colonial Drive) / Amelia Street
84.328 84 42 Ivanhoe Boulevard
85.134 85 43 Princeton Street
Winter Park 85.890 86 44 Par Street eastbound exit and westbound entrance
86.796 87 45 SR 426 (Fairbanks Avenue)
87.773 88 46 SR 423 (Lee Road)
89.517 90 47 SR 414 (Maitland Boulevard) split into 90A and 90B eastbound
Sanford 91.638 92 48 SR 436 – Altamonte Springs, Apopka
93.617 94 49 SR 434 – Longwood, Winter Springs
98.420 98 50 Lake Mary Boulevard – Lake Mary, Heathrow
Seminole 100.634 101A 51A CR 46A (Paola Road) – Heathrow
102.521 101B SR 417 South (Central Florida GreeneWay) – International Airport
102.521 101C 51 SR 46 – Mount Dora
104.019 104 52 US 17 / US 92
Volusia 107.824 108 53 County Road 4162 - Dirksen Drive/DeBary Avenue - DeBary, Deltona
110.646 111 53CA-CB County Road 4146 - Saxon Blvd. - Deltona, Orange City split into 111A and 111B eastbound
DeLand 113.802 114 54 SR 472 – Deltona, DeLand
115.920 116 55 County Road 4116 - Orange Camp Road - Lake Helen
118.481 118 56 State Road 44 - New York Avenue - New Smyrna Beach
Daytona Beach 129.131 129 57 To US 92 east eastbound exit and westbound entrance
132.001 132 58 I-95 / SR 400 east – Jacksonville, Miami, South Daytona eastbound exit and westbound entrance

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Route Log and Finder List: Table 1. Federal Highway Administration (2002-10-31). Retrieved on 2007-06-07.
  2. ^ CNN, Candidates eye voters on Florida's I-4, October 11, 2004
  3. ^ Ghostly Images Seen, Photographed On 'Deadly' Stretch Of I-4 - Orlando News Story - WKMG Orlando
  4. ^ Tampa Bay Interstates, I-4/Crosstown Connector Project Page
  5. ^ Tampa Bay Interstates, Eastbound I-4 in new alignment, August 8, 2006
  6. ^ WTSP, Eastbound I-4 traffic: New lanes, new exit through Ybor City, August 7, 2006
  7. ^ WTSP, New I-4 lanes help drivers get to concert early, August 10, 2006
  8. ^ Tampa Bay Interstates, New eastbound I-4 lane open!, August 8, 2006
  9. ^ Central Florida News 13, On The Move, April 25, 2006
  10. ^ Orlando Sentinel, Rising above I-4 crowds, April 26, 2006
  11. ^ WESH, Changes Under Way On I-4, April 26, 2006
  12. ^ Central Florida News 13, On The Move, April 26, 2006
  13. ^ Interstate 4 has reopened in both directions - Bay News 9
  14. ^ I-4 Trans4mation (FSTR 408 Interchange Project)
  15. ^ US 192 Interchange_Project Overview
  16. ^ MyTBI - Construction Projects - I-4/I-275 Interchange (operational improvements, completed December 2006)
  17. ^ SR 472 to SR 44_Project Overview
  18. ^ Kirkman Road to SR 434_Project Overview
  19. ^ Florida Department of Transportation. FDOT Interchange Report. Retrieved on October 4, 2007.

[edit] External links

edit
Main Interstate Highways (multiples of 5 in pink)		 Interstate Highway marker
4 5 8 10 12 15 16 17 19 20 22 24 25 26 27 29 30
35 37 39 40 43 44 45 49 55 57 59 64 65 66 68 69
70 71 72 73 74 75 76 (W) 76 (E) 77 78 79 80 81 82
83 84 (W) 84 (E) 85 86 (W) 86 (E) 87 88 (W) 88 (E) 89 90
91 93 94 95 96 97 99 (238) H-1 H-2 H-3
Unsigned  A-1 A-2 A-3 A-4 PRI-1 PRI-2 PRI-3
Lists  Primary  Main - Intrastate - Suffixed - Future - Gaps
Auxiliary  Main - Future - Unsigned
Other  Standards - Business - Bypassed
v • d • e
Freeways in the Tampa Bay Area
Radial
Circumferential
Toll
Crosstown Expressway (SR 618) • Veterans Expressway (SR 589) • Suncoast Parkway (SR 589)
Area bridges
v • d • e
Expressways in Greater Orlando