TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (The News Service of Florida) - Extending a toll road from the Tampa Bay area to Georgia, an idea pushed last year as a potential hurricane evacuation route, is a priority of Senate President Bill Galvano, who says it would aid rural communities.
The Bradenton Republican told reporters Wednesday that he’s directed the Senate Infrastructure and Security Committee to focus on potential costs and establish a timeline for extending the Suncoast Parkway.
Galvano also wants to review new multi-use corridors that could link Polk County to Collier County and extend the Florida Turnpike northwest from Interstate 75 in Wildwood to the Suncoast Parkway.
“We need to have this infrastructure, but we also need to have access into our rural communities and provide a multi-purpose right-of-way, so to speak, so that prosperity can return there," said Galvano.
Galvano didn’t put a price tag on the proposals but said he would support issuing bonds to pay for the roads.
That would increase available money for projects while creating long-term debt. The extension of the Suncoast Parkway was among a number of proposals put forward after millions of Floridians evacuated their homes in advance of Hurricane Irma in September 2017, creating massive traffic tie-ups on the turnpike and Interstate 75.
The 2019 legislative session starts March 5.
