Welcome to the 42-mile Suncoast Parkway, the most recent link in the more than 400 miles of toll roads within the Florida's Turnpike system. Connecting with the Veterans Expressway in northwest Hillsborough County, the Suncoast Parkway links Hillsborough with Pasco and Hernando counties, providing both a valuable link in Florida's Intrastate Highway System and an alternative north-south through Florida's west coast. The Suncoast Parkway, like other Florida's Turnpike roads, is a user-financed facility, paid for through the combination of revenue bonds and revenues collected on the entire Turnpike system. Tolls collected throughout the system pay for operation and maintenance costs, and for bond debt. The Suncoast Parkway from S.R. 50 to U.S. 98, near the Hernando/ Citrus County Line, opened to traffic on August 11, 2001. The traveling public now has an opportunity to use a scenic, environmentally friendly, limited-access facility from Tampa International Airport through Hillsborough, Pasco, and Hernando Counties. Interchanges are located at Van Dyke Road, S.R. 54, S.R. 52, Pasco/Hernando County Line Road, Spring Hill Drive, and S.R. 50. Motorist Aid Call Boxes Florida's Turnpike, in cooperation with Florida Highway Patrol, has provided new, state-of-the-art, motorist-aid call boxes along the Suncoast Parkway from Milepost 17.4 near the Hillsborough-Pasco County Line to Milepost 44.5 near State Road 50 (Cortez Boulevard) in Hernando County. The radio-based voice and data call box system is designed to provide assistance to motorists for police/medical emergencies or mechanical/towing road service. Florida Highway Patrol has responsible charge of all dispatching relative to the call boxes. They receive all calls at the Troop C dispatch center in Tampa and respond accordingly. They use their computer-automated dispatch system to direct the required EMS/fire/police/towing resources to the motorist. Each call box is identified with a milepost marker and is ADA compliant. Hearing impaired or non English-speaking patrons have easy operation using any of the 4 optional notification buttons on the call box faceplate. In the future motorist-aid call boxes will be installed on the Suncoast Parkway from State Road 50 north to U.S. 98. They provide reliable communication and an increased level of safety, security, and convenience for our patrons. Toll Plazas Mainline plazas are staffed 24 hours per day. The Suncoast Parkway ramp plazas are staffed 6:30 a.m. until 8:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The ramp plazas at County Line Road and Van Dyke Road are unstaffed. Ramp plazas are unattended on Saturday and Sundays and holidays. On the Veterans Expressway, the Waters Avenue plaza is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All other ramps are unstaffed. Please use exact change in these areas that are unstaffed. SUNCOAST
PARKWAY PROJECT 1 TOLLS
FOR 2-AXLE VEHICLES
To
find the tolls for traveling on the Suncoast Parkway Project 1, put your finger
on the name of the interchange where you will be getting on the parkway from the
list across the top. Slide your finger down the column until you reach the
name of the interchange where you will be getting off the parkway.
The number in the box directly under your finger is the amount you will pay for
riding the Suncoast Parkway. To
calculate multi-axle toll rates, take the number of axles minus one, then
multiply by the toll amount shown on the table above. The Suncoast Trail The Suncoast Trail is a paved recreational trail constructed parallel to the new Suncoast Parkway Project, in Hillsborough, Pasco and Hernando counties. The Suncoast Parkway is the first Florida Department of Transportation, Turnpike District, facility incorporating a multiuse recreational trail into the design and construction of a limited-access roadway. Currently, 29 miles of the Suncoast Trail are complete and open to the public from Lutz-Lake Fern Road in Hillsborough County to State Road 50 in Hernando County. By late 2002 a pedestrian bridge over State Road 50 and final paving northward to U.S. 98 near the Hernando-Citrus County will extend the trail to a total of 44 miles. The Suncoast Trail corridor is contained within and along the west side of the Suncoast Parkway right-of-way. It provides an alternative route for safe bicycle and pedestrian commuting for local residents and also serves as a recreational facility for the region by providing an important north-south connector between public lands, parks, and greenways. Operation and maintenance of the trail and construction of additional trail amenities are the responsibilities of each county. The 400-foot wide corridor acquired for the Suncoast Parkway Project provides ample space between the roadway and the trail. The natural beauty of the Central Gulf Coast area is made evident through carefully planned trailheads and other features, including rest areas and river, wildlife, and wetland interpretive and viewing areas. Plans for future connections between the facility and adjoining properties are currently being explored for the purpose of providing additional trail access points and greater access to recreational opportunities. In cooperation with Hillsborough, Pasco and Hernando counties, the Suncoast Trail has been designated as a "Millennium Trail" by The White House Millennium Council, and an application to the National Park Service is pending for its designation as a National Recreation Trail. Coupled with the roadway aesthetic design guidelines and the wildlife and water crossings, the trail and the roadway provide a beautiful, scenic corridor through west Central Florida. Map of the Suncoast Trail Path Environmental Design Features The Suncoast Parkway Project I is the largest roadway project designed by the Turnpike District in recent years. By working closely with South West Florida Water Management District (SMFWMD), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other agencies in the planning and mitigating process, the Turnpike District designed the roadway to blend into the existing environment and reduce the environmental impacts for such a huge project. The mitigation project proposes preserving 10,170 acres of land in public ownership, enhancing wetlands on this land and conveying the land to the SWFWMD for long-term habitat management. Wildlife crossings have been incorporated into the roadway plans and there will be limited clearing in many areas to save existing trees and natural growth. Black vinyl fencing, dark brown guardrails and lightposts, light brown concrete, and monotube brown roadway signs will enhance the Suncoast Parkway. Suncoast Parkway Logo Panel Motorists traveling on the new roadway will notice an aesthetic enhancement on most of the paneled bridge walls. One of the 5-feet-by-5-feet panels will be cast as a logo panel with a botanical motif. The depiction represents Andropogon Ternarius, a native grass indigenous to the Gulf Coast. Andropogon, more than 3 feet in height, can be found in meadows, along roadsides, in thin woods and pinelands. This design element was added to reflect the Turnpike's desire for the Suncoast Parkway to preserve the natural landscape and species wherever possible. Also, it helps to create a pleasurable driving experience for the traveling public. SUNPASS, an electronic toll collection system, through the use of dedicated SunPass lanes and mixed-use lanes, allows motorists to pass through toll plazas on the Suncoast Parkway without stopping while their toll is electronically deducted using a transponder mounted on the vehicle. The system, which was implemented in South Florida during 1998 is now available on the Suncoast Parkway. The SunPass system consists of a small transponder attached to the user's vehicle, which can be read electronically by a device at the toll plaza. The user's SunPass account is instantaneously debited for the toll charge, making toll payments more convenient for patrons. The electronic toll collection system can process more vehicles per hour with less traffic congestion. Other Tampa area toll roads implementing SunPass are: Veterans Expressway, Tampa Crosstown Expressway, Sunshine Skyway Bridge, Pinellas Bayway Bridge, and the Polk Parkway. To obtain additional information and purchase a SunPass transponder, call toll free at 1-888-TOLL-FLA (888-865-5352). SunPass and E-Pass can be used on all Turnpike roads, as well as OOCEA (Orlando Orange County Expressway Authority) roads. If you choose to purchase a Turnpike SunPass, you can also use it on the Selmon in Tampa, the Osceola Parkway, the Panhandle bridges and Miami-Dade Expressway Authority roads. Florida's Turnpike roads include the Beeline Expressway, the Suncoast Parkway/ Veterans Expressway, the Polk Parkway, the Sawgrass Expressway and the future Seminole Expressway. Please visit the SunPass on the internet at www.sunpass.com. DID YOU KNOW? DID YOU KNOW THAT... 446,354 square feet of R.E. wall (bridge panels) are being used in the construction of the parkway? If made into one wall one foot high it would stretch 85 miles. DID YOU KNOW THAT... 4,573,018 pounds of reinforcing steel is being used to build the Parkway? That's enough for 22 cruise ships. DID YOU KNOW THAT... 1,129,629 linear feet of wire is being used on the Parkway? That's enough wire to stretch from Tampa to Tallahassee! DID YOU KNOW THAT... There will 7,917,872 cubic yards of embankment on the Parkway? That's enough to fill Raymond James Stadium 25 times! Suncoast Parkway - Public Information Office For information on the connecting Veterans Expressway click here! FAQ * Suncoast Parkway Facts * Construction Notes * Maps * Contact Us * Suncoast Parkway 2
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