Selmon Expressway Will Close This Week: Here’s Why

Author Tampa Bay's Morning Krewe

June 19th 6:09 AM

Those of you taking the Selmon Expressway know it will be closing this week. The Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority announced that the Selmon Expressway West extension will be closed this Thursday, June 20 at 8 PM. It will reopen on Friday, June 21 before 6 AM. This is good news, so if you are looking to take that commute to your job on Friday morning you can. The work will be done on the elevated lanes over Gandy Boulevard. The reason why they are closing it is to ensure the safety and integrity of the expressway. The way around it will be to use Gandy Boulevard local lanes at the times when the expressway is closed.

Who The Selmon Expressway Is Named After

The Selmon Expressway is named after Tampa Bay Buccaneers legend Lee Roy Selmon. He was the very first draft pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the history of the franchise. He was drafted in the first round with the first pick in the 1976 NFL Draft. He played football at the University of Oklahoma and was the NFL Defensive Player of the year in 1979. He also was a first-team all-pro three times in his career. Additionally, he made the Pro Bowl six straight times from 1979 to 1984. Yes, Lee Roy Selmon is in the Buccaneers Ring of Honor and his name is shown at Raymond James Stadium. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995. Lee Roy Selmon also joined the University of South Florida athletic department here in Tampa. He was the Athletic Director from 2001 to 2004.

Before it was known as the Selmon Expressway it was known as the Southern Crosstown Expressway. The name of the Expressway was changed to what it is now in 1999.

ATTENTION DRIVERS ⚠️: Portion of Selmon Expressway to close this week. What to know https://t.co/4rknHyiieK pic.twitter.com/kPmLWrf05F
— WFLA NEWS (@WFLA) June 18, 2024

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.