Florida State Road 429
Template:Infobox FL State Road State Road 429 (SR 429), also known as the Daniel Webster Western Beltway or Western Expressway, is a limited-access toll road built and maintained by the Orlando Orange County Expressway Authority (OOCEA) and Florida's Turnpike Enterprise. It currently extends 25 miles (40 km) from U.S. Highway 192 (State Road 530) near Walt Disney World north to U.S. Highway 441 (State Road 500/Orange Blossom Trail) in Apopka. Control cities are Apopka and Tampa.
SR 429 was originally planned as a western half of State Road 417.
Section A
Section A is the original 10.6-mile section from Florida's Turnpike in Ocoee, to US 441 in Apopka. It has a $1.00 toll plaza in the middle, the first toll-plaza with full-speed express lanes for users of the E-Pass electronic toll collection system. The road itself was finished in July 2000, temporarily ending at SR 50, and the interchange with Florida's Turnpike, featuring the highest ramp in the Orlando area, was completed in February 2001.
SR 429 was originally planned to continue north, but because the land needed for the SR 429 right of way was not secured ahead of time, new housing was developed north of the current SR 429/U.S. 441 intersection. This has forced a change in plans for the extension of SR 429.
When the Apopka Bypass is built, SR 429 will be rerouted onto the west part of the bypass, and current SR 429 north of the bypass will be SR 451 (originally planned as SR 429A). This is because Section B will connect to the west end of the Apopka Bypass rather than the current end of SR 429. SR 451 will basically become a large entrance/exit ramp for SR 429.
Section C
Section C is the 22-mile section from Florida's Turnpike to I-4 (SR 400) south of Walt Disney World. The 4-mile section from Florida's Turnpike to County Road 535 was completed in December 2002. The remaining 18 miles are currently under construction, a dual effort of the OOCEA and Florida's Turnpike Enterprise. The part from CR 535 south to New Independence Parkway opened December 16, 2005, with the extension to US 192 opening December 23.[1] The Turnpike-maintained section, south of Seidel Road, was rushed for the opening; the high-speed toll lanes at the barrier toll had not been completed, nor had either interchange (Western Way or Seidel Road). The Schofield Road interchange had also not been completed, meaning that on December 23 no interchanges were open between US 192 and New Independence Parkway. Scheduled openings are April 4, 2006[2][3] for Western Way, April 12, 2006[4] for Seidel Road, and December 7, 2006 for the remainder from US 192 south to I-4.[5]
Section B
Section B, now also known as the Wekiva Parkway, which would connect SR 429's future north end at US 441 to I-4 in Sanford, has been under debate for over a decade because its planned corridor is complicated by the ecologically-fragile Wekiva River basin and shifty support from Lake County. In 2004, an agreement was reached for its completion. Its exact route and schedule for construction are still unclear, but it is supposed to be built largely as a long causeway with a limited number of exits to better control development in the region. One of the plans would link SR 429 with SR 417, creating a continuous beltway north of Orlando; the others would involve a short drive on I-4 or its collector/distributor roads to reach SR 417.
The current plans for the north end of SR 429 is for it to be redirected west with the John Land Apopka Expressway to meet US 441 further north, from which point the Wekiva Parkway will begin. The remaining stub will be redesignated SR 451, and will eventually be extended further north from US 441 as a surface road.
Exit list
| Number | Mile | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interstate 4 | southbound exit and northbound entrance; not open yet | ||
| Sinclair Road | not open yet | ||
| U.S. Highway 192 - Kissimmee | |||
| barrier toll | |||
| 8 | Disney World; Hartzog Road (Western Way) | ||
| Seidel Road | northbound exit and southbound entrance | ||
| 13 | Schofield Road | not open yet | |
| 15 | New Independence Parkway | ||
| Independence barrier toll | |||
| 19 | County Road 535 - Winter Garden Vineland Road | ||
| 22 | Florida's Turnpike - Miami; Ocala | ||
| 23 | State Road 50 - West Colonial Drive | ||
| 24 | State Road 438 - Plant Street; Franklin Street | ||
| 26 | West Road to Clarcona-Ocoee Road | ||
| Forest Lake barrier toll | |||
| 30 | County Road 437A - Ocoee-Apopka Road | northbound exit and southbound entrance | |
| State Road 414 | proposed | ||
| 33 | U.S. Highway 441 - Orange Blossom Trail; Apopka | northbound exit and southbound entrance |
External links
References
- ^ Scott Powers, Western Beltway pushes 5 1/2 miles farther south, Orlando Sentinel December 16, 2005
- ^ Beth Kassab and Scott Powers, New road access to Disney to open, Orlando Sentinel March 27, 2006
- ^ Western Way Opens, Central Florida News 13 April 4, 2006
- ^ Phone call to Florida's Turnpike Enterprise information line
- ^ Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, Central Florida Traffic Advisory Update Releases, updated March 24, 2006