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after community and elected official's objection. Extending the expressway would relieve congestion on now overcrowded Gandy Blvd, as well as allow an additional dedicated evacuation route for
Pinellas residents, which would leave Gandy Blvd available for South Tampa residents. However, local residents and business owners have continually struck down the idea, claiming that the thoroughfare will cause decreased property values and increased noise, destroy the ambiance of Gandy Blvd, and keep customers away from local businesses.
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Interchanges at
Manhattan and WestShore would have been built as well. But with the North Connector, the South Connector also faced fierce opposition from the Gandy community. In addition, FDOT declared in the early 2000s that the project would not be financially feasible due to high construction and land acquisition costs. In 2005, developers of the
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This alignment is the last viable option for a Selmon
Expressway extension towards the Gandy Bridge. This plan would call for a two-lane elevated span through the median of Gandy Blvd. The design would be similar to the Reversible Express Lanes that were constructed east of downtown. However, some in
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Original designs had the expressway north of its present route, beginning around Bay-to-Bay Blvd and following a CSX rail line to Cass St, and then cutting through central downtown, and ending around 50th St. In addition, there were plans to connect what is today Ashley Dr to the expressway. However,
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This alignment called for an elevated four lane structure on the north side of Gandy Blvd, connecting the Selmon
Expressway and Dale Mabry Hwy to the Gandy Bridge. Interchanges at Manhattan and WestShore would have been built as well. However, this would have also meant that 37 businesses would have
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A proposed link between the Selmon
Expressway's current south terminus at Gandy Blvd and Dale Mabry Hwy and the Gandy Bridge has been the subject of fierce controversy ever since the expressway's inception. The connection to the bridge was in the original design for the Expressway, but was taken out
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bought up a tract of land between
Manhattan and WestShore, on the south side of the CSX rail line. This same tract of land would have been necessary for the South Connector to be constructed. When another crucial area of land (the former Imperial Yacht basin) was bought up by condo developers (New
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This alignment is similar in nature to the North
Connector. However its routing is different; extending the Selmon along the CSX rail corridor that flanks Tyson Ave. This alignment would have called for much of the extension to be elevated due to the nature of the surrounding environment.
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On July 29, 2008, THEA unveiled a new, permanent logo that will eventually replace all previous logos along the expressway. This logo features the downtown Tampa skyline in purple with the expressway winding into it. The title below the graphic reads "SELMON EXPRESSWAY".
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The logos for the
Expressway have changed between the late 1970s and the early 2000s. Prior to 1978, the logo was a white "X" inside a white circle on a green field that boasted the heading, "TAMPA CROSSTOWN". This logo was eventually phased out by the late 1980s.
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In 2002, the Tampa
Hillsborough Expressway Authority opened the reversible express lanes and designed a more modern logo. The shield contains a white background with a bridge on the foreground. The title was changed to "Selmon Crosstown Expressway".
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and traveling along a CSX rail corridor through Palma Ceia. The route then made an eastward turn at Platt St/Willow Ave as it snaked its way through historic Hyde Park. Construction ended with a 3/4 mile-long, six-lane viaduct that spanned the
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in the southern portion of downtown and stopped at
Florida Ave (Exit 6A). Stub ramps at the expressway's east end were built for easy extension of the route. The initial six miles (10 km) of the South Crosstown Expressway opened in 1976.
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What is known today as the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway was originally called the "South Crosstown Expressway", and was originally designated as State Road 449. The original name can be seen on many older maps and atlases.
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the Gandy community continue to rally against this plan. In 2008, the FDOT improved Gandy Blvd itself by raising the median, limiting/modifying turn points/lanes, and upgrading traffic signals.
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and eventually towards the east coast of Florida, replacing SR 60 as a primary east-west route. This extension was killed off by several community revolts in the 1960s and 1970s.
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FDOT and THEA have previously proposed several other connectors for the Selmon Expressway in the past, all of which have failed due to financial burdens and community concerns.
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A component connector to the Gandy proposal was rumored to connect the failed Gandy extension to Interstate 375 in St. Pete. However, the plan proved to be unpractical.
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been wiped out, sparking fierce opposition among the Gandy community. Since the early 2000s, there have been no plans to bring this alignment back to the forefront.
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this plan was changed, most likely due to the development in downtown. Instead, the route was shifted south, taking the expressway through southern downtown.
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In the late 1970s, a contest was held to see which logo would be best for the expressway's image. Eventually a blue shield design with the image of pirate
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As mentioned above, this shield was implemented in the 1970s and still can be seen along the expressway today, even though it is slowly being replaced.
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Port) in 2005, the South Connector plan was basically killed off. There have been no intentions to bring this plan to the forefront either as of 2006.
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and the title, "TAMPA CROSSTOWN EXPRESSWAY", came out on top. These signs replaced the South Crosstown Expressway signs by the late 80s.
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Construction commenced on an extension in 1979 due to the immense population growth in Brandon and the heavily congested
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Little is known about this leg of the Crosstown System. However, it would have run from State Road 60 in Brandon to the
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Construction of I-75 from Lutz to Hialeah in the late 1980s connected a trumpet interchange with the expressway.
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At the eastern terminus, there was also a proposal to extend the Expressway beyond Interstate 75 to the
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Recommended 1985 Principal Street & Highway Plan (Tampa Urban Area Transportation Study; 1961)
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Construction commenced on the South Crosstown Expressway in 1974, beginning around Gandy Blvd at
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The Lee Roy Selmon Expressway including the Reversible Express Lanes at 78th Street.
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Three different concepts have been proposed over the years, as described below:
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The North Crosstown Expressway plan resurfaced in 2002/2003 as part of THEA's
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and would have connected the exit at Willow Ave (Exit 4) to the current
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What was planned as the "West Crosstown Expressway" was designated as
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248:Some information used in this section came from
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236:Central Connector/Elevated Gandy Blvd
22:Tampa Bay Crosstown Expressway System
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322:Expressways in the Tampa Bay area
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89:The Jose Gaspar-inspired shield.
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317:Freeways in the United States
138:The West Crosstown Expressway
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296:Jose Gaspar Crosstown Logo
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172:Courtney Campbell Causeway
229:Legacy Park condo complex
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101:An interim THCEA shield.
183:Tampa Bay Area Beltway
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187:Veterans Expressway
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