Florida State Road 581

State Road 581 marker

State Road 581
Bruce B. Downs Boulevard
Route information
Maintained by FDOT
Length: 3.505 mi[1] (5.641 km)
CR 581: 12.554 miles (20.204 km)
Major junctions
South end: SR 56 in Wesley Chapel
North end: SR 54 in Wesley Chapel
Highway system
← SR 580SR 582 →

State Road 581 (SR 581), also known as Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, is a 3.5-mile north–south road in Pasco County, extending from State Road 56, north to SR 54 in Wesley Chapel. SR 581, along with County Road 581, which extends 12.6 miles to the south of State Road 581's southern terminus, forms the major thoroughfare through New Tampa, a booming part of the city of Tampa annexed during the 1980s, to Wesley Chapel. The road is currently being widened from its current two lanes.

Route description

State Road 581 begins at the intersection between the northern terminus of County Road 581 and State Road 56. State Road 581 takes Bruce B. Downs Boulevard northbound through a rapidly developing area, which is sparsely populated, ending at State Road 54.[2][3]

County Road 581

County Road 581 is a 12.6-mile long county road, extending from State Road 580 (Busch Boulevard) in Tampa to State Road 56 in Wesley Chapel, where it becomes State Road 581. The road begins at the intersection with State Road 580, at the southwest corner of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, where County Road 581 heads south as 30th Street, with residential areas to the west and Busch Gardens to the east. North of Bougainvillea Avenue, the road passes by a Yuengling brewing plant and a more commercial area, heading towards State Road 582 (Fowler Avenue), where the name changes to Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and forms the western boundary of the University of South Florida. Just north of the shopping centers, CR 581 passes through medical centers on both sides of the road, intersecting CR 582A (Fletcher Avenue), then leaving the medical area to residential areas, where the road starts to curve to the northeast, and enters a more sparsely populated area with newer developments. It then has an interchange with I-75, continuing to the northeast and crossing into Pasco County, where it terminates at State Road 54 in Wesley Chapel.[2][3][4]

History

The portion of the road north of State Road 582 was renamed in 1984 from 30th Street by Hillsborough's Board of County Commissioners in honor of Bruce B. Downs, a deputy county administrator for public works.[5]

Future

Portions of the road are currently being widened to eight lanes.[6]

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1][7]kmDestinationsNotes
HillsboroughTampa0.0000.000 SR 580 (East Busch Boulevard)
1.5[8]2.4 SR 582 (East Fowler Avenue)
2.5[8]4.0 CR 582A (East Fletcher Avenue)
University3.3[8]5.3East Bearss Avenue (CR 678 west)
Tampa7.7[8]12.4 I-75 (SR 93A) – Ocala, Naples, Fort Myers, AtlantaI-75 exit 270
PascoWesley Chapel12.55420.204 SR 56 to I-75 / SR 54 westsouth end of state maintenance
16.05925.844 SR 54 east / CR 54 west to I-75 – Land O' Lakes, Zephyrhills
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. 1 2 FDOT straight line diagrams Archived March 6, 2014, at the Wayback Machine., accessed March 2014
  2. 1 2 Google (2010-07-31). "overview map of State Road/County Road 581" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
  3. 1 2 General Highway Map Pasco County, Florida (PDF) (Map). Florida Department of Transportation. February 2004. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
  4. ↑ General Highway Map Hillsborough County, Florida (PDF) (Map). Florida Department of Transportation. May 2005. Retrieved 2010-07-31.
  5. ↑ Nipps, Emily. "Bruce B. Downs: The man behind the name". St. Petersburg Times 18 Feb 2007
  6. ↑ Knight, Kenneth. "Construction has started on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard widening project". The Tampa Tribune 20 Jan 2010
  7. ↑ FDOT GIS data Archived index at the Wayback Machine., accessed January 2014
  8. 1 2 3 4 Google Maps distance
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