Interstate 375 (Florida)

Interstate 375

North Bay Drive

Route information

Auxiliary route of I-75

Maintained by FDOT

Length:

1.220 mi (1.963 km)

Existed:

1979 – present

Major junctions

West end:

I-275 in St. Petersburg

East end:

SR 595 in St. Petersburg

Location

Counties:

Pinellas

Highway system

Interstate Highway System

Florida State Highway System

← SR 373		SR 375 →
← SR 590		SR 594 →

Interstate 375 (I-375) in St. Petersburg, Florida, also known as North Bay Drive, is a 1.2-mile-long spur route from Interstate 275 into downtown. It is also designated as the unsigned State Road 592. There is a sibling segment of freeway nearby that is designated I-175.

Interstate 375 begins at an interchange with Interstate 275 (exit 23), heading east towards downtown St. Petersburg, with interchanges with 8th Street North/9th Street North, before ending at 4th Avenue North west of 4th Street North. Westbound I-375 begins with a split of 5th Avenue North west of 4th Street North with no exits until reaching I-275. Along with its sister highway I-175, I-375 lacks exit numbers.

Interstate 375 was originally planned as a much longer, state highway, extending west of Interstate 275 and following a CSX rail line towards a proposed toll road near Clearwater. When I-75 was relocated in the late 1970s/early 1980s, five miles (8 km) of additional interstate became available, thus the St. Pete feeder sections of I-375 and the neighboring I-175 were upgraded to Interstate status. However, the Interstate Highway standards at the time would not allow the I-375 extension to receive Federal Interstate Highway funding, leaving only the section east of I-275 built to freeway standards. The planned freeway extension of I-375 was canceled by officials at the Department of Transportation in the mid 1970s. The cancellation of the rest of Interstate 375 eventually resulted in US 19 between Gandy Boulevard and the Pinellas-Pasco line being upgraded to freeway standards.

Contrary to popular belief, the ramp stub at the I-375 interchange was not a result of the failed freeway extension. A connection to 20th St N was originally planned from this stub. However, the 20th St N and 5th Ave N Intersection was already convoluted prior to I-275's construction and the Florida Department of Transportation decided not to build the connection as a result.

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Wikipedia