Page One

Page One: Big Island Gap and FL 687, 4th Street North (Exit 32)

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Perspective of Big Island Gap at the 4 St N approach bridge to Interstate 275

We will start with the virtual tour of Interstate 275 as we make progress from Big Island Gap south of the Howard Frankland Bridge southward through downtown St. Petersburg to the entrance of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. Along the way we’ll stop at each exit as we progress our way southbound.

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Big Island is a natural island situated in Tampa Bay just off the far northeast St. Petersburg coastline and mainly consists of mangroves that meet the water. The east end of Big Island transitions from a natural island to a dredged causeway constructed as part of the Howard Frankland Bridge in 1959. At the southern end of Big Island is the exit for 4 St N (FL 687), Exit 32. The two small bridges that carry 4 St N (as well as Interstate 275 immediately south of 4 St N) cross a body of water called Big Island Gap.

4 St N takes travelers to the Derby Lane dog track (via Gandy Blvd.), passes through the 4 St N business district (a linear business district between Gandy Blvd. and downtown St. Petersburg) and provides an alternative route to downtown St. Petersburg and Tropicana Field. However, 4 St N can get backed up during rush hour (and not to mention the series of traffic lights). Due to the great distance between Exit 32 and downtown St. Petersburg, although 4 St N (and its parallel partner at Exit 31, Martin Luther King St N) may be a more direct route when you see it on a map, I believe using Interstate 275 south is a more viable choice as it gets you to downtown St. Petersburg quicker.

Being a Florida DOT owned and maintained road, 4 St N carries the FL 687 designation for its entire length from Exit 32 to downtown St. Petersburg, ending at the ramp entrance to westbound Interstate 175 and the intersection of 5 Av S. 4 St N also carries the US 92 designation and is multiplexed starting at Gandy Blvd. and ending at 5 Av N. The intersection of 4 St N and 5 Av N is also the national and Florida terminus of US 92, a cross Florida highway that parallels Interstates 275 and 4 (as well as the predecessor to Interstate 4) from St. Petersburg to Daytona Beach. South of 5 Av S, 4 St S transitions from Florida DOT to City of St. Petersburg ownership and maintenance.

4th Street Trivia

Did you know that in 4th Street's early heydays, it was owned and maintained by the Florida DOT being a part of FL 687 all the way to the terminus of 4 St S at Pinellas Point Dr S; FL 687 continued west on Pinellas Point Dr S to its terminus with US 19 (34 St S)? Probably right around when the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge was opened in 1954, US 19 as we know it today as 34th Street was not connected to the rest of US 19 as of yet. FL 687 provided a state road connection from downtown St. Petersburg via 4 St S and Pinellas Point Dr S to US 19 and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.

Today the section of 4 St S south of 5 Av S is under the ownership and maintenance of the City of St. Petersburg thanks to a transfer of jurisdictional responsibility of this section in the 1970's. With Interstate 275 being extended through St. Petersburg and being linked up with the 1987 Sunshine Skyway Bridge, I presume there was no need for the Florida DOT to maintain a section of 4th Street and for practically economical purposes the City of St. Petersburg can maintain that section.

In downtown St. Petersburg from 5 Av N to 5 Av S, FL 687 uses 4th Street for southbound traffic and 3rd Street to the east for northbound traffic. A small part of 5 Av S which connects the two streets is under Florida DOT jurisdiction, that small part is known as FL 594 and it runs as a one way street headed east for only one block. In 2008 the downtown St. Petersburg section of FL 687 received a paving, signing and signalization upgrade including mast arm traffic signals; what you may know is that although FL 687 is Florida DOT owned and maintained, construction of the needed upgrades was performed by the City of St. Petersburg Engineering & Capital Improvements Department under an agreement between the Florida DOT and the City of St. Petersburg known as a Local Agency Program (LAP) project, which allows the City to bid and administer the project like if the Florida DOT did it themselves, resulting in a cost savings.

Interstate 275 Southbound at Exit 32

	The St. Petersburg Parkway and William C. Cramer Memorial Highway The section of Interstate 275 as it passes through St. Petersburg is designated as both the St. Petersburg Parkway and the William C. Cramer Memorial Highway. William Cramer used to be a Congressman who championed for Interstate 275's push through St. Petersburg.
	One mile to 4 St N Notice that you can reach US 92 from here simply by heading south on 4 St N (also known as FL 687) to Gandy Blvd.
	4 St N/FL 687 is 1/2 mile ahead Remain in the right lane to exit Interstate 275 at 4 St N.
	Mileage sign for the three north beach exits Distances to the exits for Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores and the Redington Beaches are shown.
	Mileage sign for the three south beach exits Distances to the exits for Madeira Beach, Treasure Island and St. Pete Beach.
	Be Warned: No Reentry onto Southbound Interstate 275 from 4 St N! If you exit onto 4 St N by mistake and want to proceed south on Interstate 275, simply follow 4 St N to Gandy Blvd. and head west on Gandy Blvd. where you can rejoin Interstate 275 south. If you meant to exit onto FL 688/Ulmerton Road bear right onto Roosevelt Blvd. after turning onto Gandy Blvd. from 4 St N and that will take you straight to Ulmerton Road.
	Final opportunity to exit Interstate 275 at 4 St N Also notice the advance signage for Exit 31, FL 688/Ulmerton Road and Martin Luther King St N.

Interstate 275 Northbound at Exit 32

	Right Lane Ends 1/2 Mile You can see the exit ramp from northbound 4 St N merge onto northbound Interstate 275.
	Right Lane Ends 600 Feet The far right lane is traffic coming from northbound 4 St N onto northbound Interstate 275.
	Mileage Sign for Tampa International Airport, Tampa and Lakeland From here it's 7 miles to Tampa International Airport, 11 miles to downtown Tampa and 45 miles to Lakeland (via Interstate 4). The Lakeland mileage is a holdover from the Howard Frankland Bridge's early days when it carried Interstate 4.
	Electronic Message Sign just before the Howard Frankland Bridge You can see that the sign is in operation stating the time and distance to Interstate 4 (Exit 45B), 11 miles and 11 to 13 minutes away. The 11 to 13 minutes is on a good day when you don't have major traffic backups on Interstate 275 in Tampa.
	Southbound Lanes of 4 St N crossing Interstate 275 This overpass carries southbound 4 St N traffic as it goes over Interstate 275. This overpass was built in 1995 replacing the original 1959 overpass when it was built along with the Howard Frankland Bridge. This view is looking northbound on Interstate 275.

Perspective of Big Island Gap at the 4 St N approach bridge to Interstate 275

	The entryway approach on northbound 4 St N This shows the year the two small bridges were constructed, 1959, one year before the Howard Frankland Bridge opened in 1960.
	Looking north on 4 St N crossing Big Island Gap This is the northbound bridge headed towards Interstate 275.
	Looking north between the two bridges of 4 St N crossing Big Island Gap This is looking north towards Interstate 275. This area is a good spot for fishing; however, fishing on the two bridges is not permitted.

Proceed southbound on Interstate 275 to Page Two

Proceed onto the Howard Frankland Bridge

Proceed northbound on Interstate 275 into Tampa

12/05/09