What Are Flex Lanes On Florida Highways

Author Tampa Bay's Morning Krewe

May 29th 6:06 AM

Something that you may not have heard of is flex lanes on Florida highways. So what are flex lanes and where are they coming to in Florida? Flex lanes will allow drivers to use the shoulder of the road to pass other cars. The reason for these flex lanes are to help with traffic jams as drivers can pass crashes when flex lanes on Florida highways are open. The flex lanes are expected to launch in the summer of 2024.

On Central Florida Expressway Authority’s website, they talk about the flex lanes. They say, “These innovative lanes use a wider median shoulder to allow traffic to continue flowing when an incident causes a closure in one or more of the right lanes. If a serious crash slows traffic, the flex lane will open to get traffic safely past the crash at a reduced speed.”

Where Will The Flex Lanes On Florida Highways Be?

So, will these new flex lanes be available on Tampa Bay roadways? Well, they won’t to start with. They will be testing these new flex lanes on Florida highways in the Orlando area. One is being tested on John Young Parkway and International Drive along State Road 417. It will also be on State Road 429 between Tilden Road and State Road 414.

Now, there is a fine if you ignore when the flex lanes on Florida highways when they are activated. If you get caught, you can face a $164 fine and points on your license. It will be pretty obvious when the flex lanes will be open or closed. Green will mean go. Yellow means caution. Red means be alert and stop.

You can see in the image below where these flex lanes in the Orlando area will be.

Kevin is a member of Tampa Bay‘s Hometown Morning Krewe on 995 QYK. He has been with the station for 25 years, is a Tampa native, and went to Jesuit High School and USF. Go Bulls!. He is passionate about all things Tampa Bay. Kevin writes articles on the ongoing road projects around the Tampa Bay area, awards that Tampa Bay cities and businesses have won and country music happenings around the Bay area. He is always doing many things with his wife and kids. He loves to read books and play video games in his spare time.

What Will The Howard Frankland Bridge Look Like When It's Finished?

Here is the updated timeline for the new Howard Frankland Bridge. Lots of people drive over the 275 bridge every day, in fact, 170,000 cars a day do. The construction has been going on now for a few years, since 2017 and there is lots of progress.

There has been so much progress on the bridge in the last few months. FDOT officials said by the end of 2025, the new bridge will be complete and we can start driving over it.

The new bridge will consist of eight lanes; four general-use lanes, (Tampa to St. Petersburg) and four Express lanes.
Two lanes from the St. Petersburg side toward Tampa, two lanes from the Tampa side toward St. Petersburg. In addition, a bicycle/pedestrian pathway separated from the roadway will is also included.

Updated Timeline On New Howard Frankland Bridge

As of July 2024:

100% of pilings have been driven.

99% of bridge footings have been completed.

99% of bridge columns have been completed.

96% of bridge caps have been completed.

85% of the bridge superstructure beams have been placed.

74% of bridge decks placed.

(you can see more images of bridge components)

There are about 275 workers on the job which costs about $865.3 million. Each bridge is said to have a service life of up to 80 years. The Howard Frankland Bridge was constructed in 1959, making it 64 years old.

How Many Lanes Will There Be

More information is coming out about the new bridges that are being built. WFLA.com has great pictures of what each side will look like when it is finished. The new bridge will have a total of eight lanes, four general-purpose lanes, and four tolled express lanes. Two express lanes will travel from St. Petersburg to Tampa and the other two will run from the Tampa side toward St. Petersburg. The new bridge design will also include a bicycle/pedestrian trail that will connect Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.

Once the new bridge is built, southbound traffic will move to the new bridge and northbound traffic will move to the existing southbound lanes. The original northbound bridge will then be removed.

Artist rendition of overlook
How close will the new Howard Frankland Bridge come to looking like the artist rendition? Soon we will find out.

Photo by: Florida Department of Transportation
Artist rendition with traffic
Can’t wait for it to look like this.

Photo by: Florida Department of Transportation
Bridge Construction in July 2024
It’s looking good. Can’t wait for it to be done.
Bridge Construction in July 2024
New lane configurations. We are getting closer.
Bridge Construction in July 2024
I can’t wait to drive over this new bridge.
Artist rendition of overlook w ITS
FDOT is also installing a multi-use path for bicyclists and pedestrians.

Photo by: Florida Department of Transportation
Bridge Construction in May 2024
Look at how much wider the new Howard Frankland bridge is compared to the other two. When you drive over it you can see it is higher as well.
Bridge Construction in May 2024
Been in the works for so long. Now, we are getting close to driving over it.
Bridge Construction in May 2024
Those cranes have been a fixture in Tampa Bay for years now. Soon, they will no longer be needed.