| State Road 417 | ||||
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| Southern Connector Central Florida GreeneWay Seminole Expressway |
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| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by OOCEA and Florida's Turnpike Enterprise | ||||
| Length: | 54.06 mi[2] (87.00 km) | |||
| Existed: | December 1987[1] – present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end: | I-4 / SR 400 near Celebration | |||
| SR 528 near Orlando International Airport SR 408 near Union Park |
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| North end: | I-4 / SR 400 in Sanford | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Florida State and County Roads
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State Road 417 (SR 417), also known as the Central Florida GreeneWay, Southern Connector and Seminole Expressway (depending on the location), is a tolled freeway forming the eastern beltway around the city of Orlando, Florida, United States. It is owned and maintained by the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority (OOCEA) and Florida's Turnpike Enterprise. The OOCEA section was posthumously named after former OOCEA chairman Jim Greene.
SR 417 was originally planned to be a full beltway around Orlando. Eventually, the beltway was divided, with the west side being designated SR 429, and the east side retaining the SR 417 designation.
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The Southern Connector as well as the beltway begins at an interchange with Interstate 4 in Celebration. This section, run by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise is 6.4-mile (10.3 km) long, extending to the International Drive interchange.
Between the International Drive and Aloma Avenue interchanges in Orange County, the tollway is known as the Central Florida GreeneWay, and is operated by OOCEA.[3]
The Seminole Expressway section of the tollway begins at the north end of the Aloma Avenue interchange. This section, also run by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise is 17-mile (27 km) long, extends to an interchange with I-4 in Sanford at the end of the beltway.
The first phase of SR 417, then termed the Eastern Beltway, extended from the current east end of the east–west Expressway northward to SR 426 (Aloma Avenue) in Seminole County. It allowed commuters to bypass the crowded Semoran Boulevard, as well as give expressway access to the University of Central Florida.
The OOCEA began construction of phase I in July 1987 and the road was opened to the public on December 16, 1988 at a cost of $105 million, with $35 million being spent on acquiring the right-of-way for the 6-mile (9.7 km) route.
Phase II, the "Southeastern Beltway", was considered one of the most important parts of the Eastern Beltway because motorists could use this portion to travel from downtown Orlando to the Orlando International Airport without ever getting off the expressway system. This portion of the GreeneWay had passed through some of the most barren portions of Orange County. It skirts the Econlockhatchee River marshes that cover some of eastern Orange and northern Osceola.
The OOCEA began construction of the Southeastern Beltway, from Colonial Drive to the Beachline Expressway in January 1989, and opened ahead of schedule in July 1990. The 7.6-mile (12.2 km) route cost $72 million, with an estimated $13 million being spent on acquiring the right-of-way.
The "Southern Connector" was to become a route extending from SR 528 all the way to SR 535. The OOCEA began construction of the 22-mile (35 km) road in November 1991 and completed construction July 1, 1993, at a cost of $273 million. It was during the construction of this section that the entire beltway project was renamed the Central Florida GreeneWay. This section currently does not have an interchange with Florida's Turnpike, so motorists heading north cannot use SR 417 as a beltway around Orlando, although there are future plans to construct such an interchange.
The Seminole Expressway, the northern leg of SR 417, is located in Seminole County and is owned and operated by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise. The section south of Aloma Avenue to the county line (less than one mile) was acquired from the Seminole County Expressway Authority in April 1990 as part of Florida's Turnpike Expansion Program authorized by Senate Bill 1316.
The initial stretch, from just south of Aloma to US 17/92 opened in phases in 1994. The final six miles (10 km) connect to Interstate 4 near Sanford/Lake Mary, and opened to traffic on September 15, 2002, approximately seven months ahead of the final schedule. This leg features only one mainline toll plaza (just south of CR 427), but it is also the priciest toll plaza on SR 417 at $2 per vehicle. This section also features the only "free movement" on SR 417. No toll is collected for motorists traveling between I-4 and Rinehart Road (whose interchange with SR 417 is used for travelers on SR 46 and CR 46A to get to and from SR 417).
Due to the multiple entities involved, which included OOCEA, Walt Disney World, Osceola County, private landowners, the Reedy Creek Improvement District, and the Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, building the southernmost 6.4-mile (10.3 km) between I-4 and the GreeneWay became a complex one. Eventually, they agreed on the Southern Connector Extension, as well as the 12.4-mile (20.0 km) Osceola Parkway.
Florida's Turnpike began construction of the 6.4-mile (10.3 km) extension from the GreeneWay to I-4 in 1994 and completed construction in mid 1996. The project cost almost $153 million, with $74 million coming from contributions from the private parties involved in building this route, making it possible to get from Walt Disney World to the Orlando International Airport without ever driving on Interstate 4.
In the summer of 2010, the Expressway Authority began the widening of SR 408 from Oxalis Avenue to Goldenrod Road as well as the widening of the SR 408 Chickasaw Trail Bridge. Future phases will continue the widening of SR 408 east to SR 417 and will include the complete redesign of the SR 408 / SR 417 interchange.[4]
Florida's Turnpike Enterprise recently completed a project development & environment study (PD&E) to evaluate the widening of the Seminole Expressway, the portion of SR 417 north of University Blvd. Construction between University Blvd. and SR 434 is scheduled to begin in 2011.
In 2008, the Turnpike Enterprise began a $49 million project to reconstruct the Lake Jesup toll plaza, allowing for the inclusion of SunPass/E-PASS express lanes.
After decades of negotiations, the Turnpike Enterprise and OOCEA finally agreed to build a partial interchange between the GreeneWay and Florida's Turnpike in 2018.[5]
Construction began on November 29, 2010 to extend the Northern terminus of SR 417 from Interstate 4 to International Parkway. The $11.4 million project is scheduled to be completed by November 2011. [6]
| County | Location | Mile[7] | # | Destinations | Notes |
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| Osceola | 0.000 | I-4 / SR 400 – Tampa, Orlando | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| Southern Connector Toll Plaza - $0.75 | |||||
| 1.012 | 2 | US 192 (Celebration Avenue) to SR 530 | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 2.311 | 3 | CR 522 (Osceola Parkway) | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| Orange | 5.098 | 6 | SR 535 / SR 536 (International Drive) | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| John Young Toll Plaza - $1.25 | |||||
| 8.659 | 10 | CR 423 (John Young Parkway) | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 10.032 | 11 | US 17/US 92/US 441/SR 500/SR 600 (Orange Blossom Trail) | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 12.377 | 14 | Landstar Boulevard | Ramp toll on northbound exit and southbound entrance | ||
| Boggy Creek Toll Plaza - $1.25 | |||||
| Orlando | 15.903 | 17 | Boggy Creek Road – Orlando International Airport | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| 17.996 | 19 | Lake Nona Boulevard | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 20.550 | 22 | CR 15 (Narcoosee Road) | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 22.017 | 23 | Moss Park Road | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 22.939 | 24 | Innovation Way/Dowden Road | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 24.571 | 26 | SR 528 (Beachline Expressway) – Cocoa, Orlando International Airport | |||
| 26.482 | 27 | Lee Vista Boulevard | Ramp toll on northbound exit and southbound entrance | ||
| Curry Ford Toll Plaza - $0.75 | |||||
| 28.785 | 30 | Curry Ford Road | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 31.525 | 33 | SR 408 (east–west Expressway) – Orlando, Titusville | Signed as exits 33A (east) and 33B (west) | ||
| 33.217 | 34 | SR 50 (Colonial Drive) | Ramp toll on northbound exit and southbound entrance | ||
| University Toll Plaza - $0.75 | |||||
| 35.486 | 37 | University Boulevard – University of Central Florida | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance; signed as exits 37A (east) and 37B (west) northbound | ||
| Seminole | 37.103 | 38 | SR 426 (Aloma Avenue) | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| Oviedo | 40.300 | 41 | Red Bug Lake Road – Oviedo, Oviedo Mall, Seminole State College of Florida | Ramp toll on northbound exit and southbound entrance | |
| Winter Springs | 42.696 | 44 | SR 419 / SR 434 – Winter Springs | Ramp toll on northbound exit and southbound entrance | |
| Lake Jesup Toll Plaza - $2.00 | |||||
| Sanford | 48.184 | 49 | CR 427 / Lake Mary Blvd, Orlando Sanford International Airport | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | |
| 49.225 | 50 | US 17 / US 92 / SR 600 – Sanford, Amtrak Auto Train Terminal | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 51.078 | 52 | CR 46A – Sanford, Lake Mary | Ramp toll on southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| 53.621 | 54 | SR 46 / Rinehart Road – Heathrow, Seminole Towne Center | No toll to/from Interstate 4 | ||
| 54.061 | 55 | I-4 / SR 400 – Downtown Orlando, Daytona Beach | Northbound exit and southbound entrance; signed as exits 55A (west) and 55B (east) | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Concurrency terminus • Closed/Former • Incomplete access • Unopened |
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