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04/05/07 |
 
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Interstate 75 through the Tampa Bay area in pictures Page 1: Exit 224 (US 301) to Exit 261 (Interstate 4) Of course no subsection of Interstate275Florida.com would be complete without pictures to show you what the bypass route looks like. We will work our way northbound on Interstate 75 starting at Exit 224 (US 301 to Ellenton) and rounding our way through the Tampa Bay area as we pass by Riverview, Brandon and Interstate 4. On the next page we will continue our northward journey on Interstate 75 as we pass by Temple Terrace and New Tampa as well as the northern terminus of Interstate 275 (Exit 274). After we pass Exit 274 we will continue our northward journey on Interstate 75 all the way to Exit 309, Sumter County Road 476 to the town of Webster. Also on Page 2 we will examine some of the overpasses that crisscross Interstate 75. I have organized this subsection of Interstate275Florida.com so that you can either scroll through the entire page or you can click on any of the links below to jump to a specific exit on Interstate 75. Exit 228, Interstate 275 North Exit 229, Manatee County Road 6 Exit 246, Hillsborough County Road 672 Exit 256, The Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway Exit 260, FL 579/Martin Luther King Jr Blvd Exit 224, US 301 to Ellenton and Palmetto The pictures for Exit 224 are looking southbound on Interstate 75. First signage for Exit 224 in 1-1/4 miles. Also notice that a tourist information center can be reached at this exit. Final opportunity for Exit 224 on Interstate 75 southbound. Perspective of Exit 224 looking from US 301 northbound. Notice how the bridge that carries Interstate 75 continues over the Manatee River. Exit 228, Interstate 275 Northbound to the Sunshine Skyway and St. Petersburg Coverage of the southern terminus of Interstate 275 can be found at our St. Petersburg page! Exit 229, Manatee County Road 6 to Parrish Parrish is a little town located at the junction of US 301 and FL 62, which coincidentally is the western terminus of FL 62. To get to Parrish simply head east from this interchange for about three or four miles to the junction with US 301, then turn right on US 301 south and you cannot miss it. Advance signage for Exit 229 mounted on the overpass for Interstate 275 north. Final opportunity for Exit 229 on Interstate 75 north. Perspective of Exit 229 looking from Manatee County Road 6 westbound. In addition to reaching US 301 and Parrish you can also reach US 41 as well. Exit 240, FL 674 to Ruskin, Sun City Center and Wimauma Famous for its tomatoes, Ruskin is a community situated at the junction of FL 674 and US 41. There are efforts being undertaken by residents of the immediate Ruskin area to incorporate as Hillsborough County's 4th city (by the way, Hillsborough County has only three incorporated cities - Tampa, Temple Terrace and Plant City - while Pinellas County has 24 incorporated cities by comparison). Sun City Center is a well planned retirement community where residents get around either by motor vehicle or by golf cart and is located between Interstate 75 and US 301 on FL 674. Further east on FL 674 is the community of Wimauma. Various shopping centers and restaurants dot either side of Interstate 75 at FL 674. Signage for Wimauma and a convention center reachable from Exit 240. Advance signage for Exit 240 coming up in one mile. As evidenced by the H sign, a hospital is available at this exit. Final opportunity to exit Interstate 75 at Exit 240. After passing Exit 240, mileage to Apollo Beach, Gibsonton and Tampa. Exit 246, Hillsborough County Road 672 to Apollo Beach Apollo Beach is a community on US 41 that features many residences offering views of the sunset over Tampa Bay. If you were to go directly west of Apollo Beach across Tampa Bay you would be probably in downtown St. Petersburg at The Pier! (Sorry, there is no direct bridge to downtown St. Petersburg from Apollo Beach). You can also reach US 301 from this exit as well. This road is also known as Big Bend Road. Advance signage for Exit 246 coming up in one mile. Hillsborough County Road 672 is also known as Big Bend Road. Final opportunity for Exit 246. At one time this was a temporary end for Interstate 75 northbound while other sections were being constructed. Mileage for Riverview, Brandon and Tampa after Exit 246. Exit 250, Gibsonton Drive to Gibsonton and Riverview Gibsonton is another community situated on US 41 while Riverview is a sprawling community situated on US 301. The Riverview area is the home to most of the Tampa Bay area's television station transmitters, and we Tampa Bay area residents commonly refer to Riverview as the "antenna farm". The only exception to this is the transmitter for Tampa Bay's 10, WTSP-TV and it's situated far from here in Holiday, a community just north of the Pinellas-Pasco county line. Besides, the majority of us Tampa Bay area residents don't have to worry about pointing our antennas as we have cable nowadays. To discuss this further is outside the scope of this website; however, I may cover this as a future web topic at my sister site EdwardRingwald.com. Advance signage for Exit 250 coming up in one mile. Notice the Georgia-style exit signage as the exit number header is an integral part of the sign. Exit 250 is also referred to as Gibsonton Drive. Final opportunity for Exit 250. Unlike most other Interstate 75 interchanges around here this is where the road (Gibsonton Drive) goes over rather than under Interstate 75. Since Exit 224, US 301 and Interstate 75 parallel each other with US 301 to the east and Interstate 75 to the west. Here at Exit 254 both Interstate 75 and US 301 swap sides with each other and will do so until just before Fowler Avenue (Exit 265) in Temple Terrace. Exit 254 provides motorists another way to access Riverview which is just south of this interchange. Additionally, you can access the Brandon Town Center (a regional shopping mall) from this exit and following the signs saving you from always-on congestion on Exit 257, FL 60. Advance signage for US 301 to Riverview coming up in one mile. Final opportunity to exit onto US 301. This interchange features a collector-distributor system where all traffic exits at one point (the collector) and given a choice to go north or south on US 301 (the distributor). Exit 256, FL Toll 618/The Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway Completed in stages in 1975 to downtown Tampa, in 1981 to US 41 and in 1983 to US 301 and Interstate 75, the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway provides travelers with an express route between Brandon and downtown Tampa as well as south Tampa with a connection to St. Petersburg via the Gandy Bridge (US 92). The cash toll to drive the entire distance is about $2.00; however, discounts are available to SunPass users in the form of reduced tolls. Scheduled to open sometime in the latter part of 2006 a reversible bridge connecting downtown Tampa with Brandon should help make the commute between these two locations reasonable. The reversible bridge will work by making the lanes westbound from Brandon to downtown Tampa in the morning hours, then in the afternoon hours the lanes will be eastbound from downtown Tampa to Brandon. But there is one caveat: The reversible bridge will have no traditional toll booths, meaning that anyone who wants to use the reversible bridge will have to invest in a SunPass transponder. Believe me, a SunPass transponder makes anyone's life easier! Advance signage for the Crosstown Expressway. Notice the dedicated two right lanes for exit onto the Crosstown Expressway from Interstate 75 north. Final opportunity to exit onto the Crosstown Expressway. At this point Interstate 75 changes control cities from Tampa to Ocala. Crossing Florida from Clearwater Beach on the west to Vero Beach on the east, FL 60 is one of Florida's trans-state highways serving Clearwater, Tampa, Bartow, Lake Wales, Yeehaw Junction (junction of both US 441 and the Florida Turnpike) and Vero Beach. FL 60 is four lanes for the most part with a two lane section from east of Lake Wales to Vero Beach. FL 60 makes a good scenic day trip! You can access Brandon and its many shopping venues including the Brandon Town Center at this exit. However, the entrance to the Brandon Town Center can become congested at times throughout the day, especially on the weekends. Exit 257 is coming up in 1/2 mile. Signage for my alma mater, the Brandon Campus of Hillsborough Community College. The campus can be reached by exiting at Exit 257 and turning left, then a right turn onto Falkenburg Road and north on Falkenburg for about a mile and a half. Final opportunity for Exit 257, FL 60 to Brandon. As you will notice, Exits 256 and 257 share a collector-distributor ramp system where local traffic uses the ramp lanes while through Interstate 75 traffic uses the through lanes. Exit 260, FL 574/Martin Luther King Jr Blvd Formerly known as Buffalo Avenue, FL 574 connects Dale Mabry Highway in Tampa with the small community of Mango. East of Mango FL 574 continues to Plant City with a connection to US 92. In the 1990's the highway was renamed Martin Luther King Jr Blvd in honor of the civil rights leader who meant equality for all mankind. Few people protested when the road name was changed but acceptance of change was common. During the Florida State Fair you can reach the fairgrounds using FL 574 west to US 301 and following the signs to the parking area of your choice. Advance signage for FL 574 coming up in less than a mile. Also notice the advance signage for Interstate 4 which is two miles from this point. Signage for Martin Luther King Jr Blvd and the fairgrounds. Final opportunity for Exit 260A, FL 574 east to Mango. To go west on FL 574 you must go under the overpass that is just ahead. Final opportunity for Exit 260B, FL 574 west. Traversing the state from Interstate 275's Exit 45B (commonly known as "Malfunction Junction" which is getting a way overdue makeover) in Tampa to Interstate 95 just outside Daytona Beach, Interstate 4 is Florida's first interstate. The first sections of Interstate 4 in and around Tampa were built in the 1950's and 1960's; when Interstate 4 initially opened its western terminus was St. Petersburg including the Howard Frankland Bridge opened in 1960. Interstate 4's western terminus was truncated at today's Interstate 275 when Interstate 75 was extended into Tampa. For more information regarding Interstate 4 in the Tampa Bay area please head over to our Interstate 4 section here at Interstate275Florida.com. Overhead for Interstate 4 on Interstate 75 northbound. Notice that all traffic headed to Interstate 4 uses the right lane. Final opportunity for Exit 261, Interstate 4. Final opportunity for Exit 261, Interstate 4, on Interstate 75 southbound. |
This site was last updated 04/03/07