Keeping Florida on the move for the last 50 years
Happy 50th Birthday Florida's Turnpike!
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Completed in 1957 with customer service in mind, the Sunshine State Parkway enabled drivers to go 108 miles from Golden Glades in Miami to Fort Pierce. This roadway allowed travelers to drive quickly and efficiently without the inconvenience of stoplights or traffic congestion. Fifty years later, this same roadway, now known as Florida's Turnpike, has expanded to 460 miles, taking customers from Homestead to Wildwood. Florida's Turnpike Enterprise maintains its dedication to customers with the service philosophy: We affect people's lives by bringing a smile to the face of everyone we serve.
Looking back
Dramatic changes have been made to the roadway and operations since the first drivers paid their tolls more than 50 years ago, for example:
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1950s - As poodle skirts, leather
jackets and Elvis came into vogue, the
Florida State Turnpike Authority was
formed and the Sunshine State Parkway
was established. After just 18 months of
construction, the new toll road was open
for business on January 25, 1957. Newspapers informed the
public about How to drive on a superhighway, How to handle
200 H.P., and What to do if a wild animal leaps out. |
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1960s - The same decade one giant leap for
mankind was made on the moon, development
on Florida's new superhighway also came in
leaps and bounds. Growing from 110 to 308
miles; the Sunshine State Parkway's name
was changed to Florida's Turnpike in 1968.
In 1969, the Florida Department of
Transportation was established. |
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1970s - With The Brady Bunch on TV and
Aerosmith on the radio, the Bee Line Connector
West Expressway opened in Central Florida in
1973. The 47-mile Homestead Extension in South
Florida soon followed in 1974. |
 |
1980s - Florida's Turnpike made a
commitment to modernization, expansion
and technology as Americans played
Atari and demanded their MTV. New
interchanges and road widening projects
helped speed up toll transactions, and
service plazas underwent renovations. |
 |
1990s - In the time when
Seinfeld was on television and
businesses and media started to
take notice of the Internet, the
Florida Legislature authorized
the development of SunPass in
1993. SunPass was launched in 1999, processing up to 1,800
vehicles per hour - 300 percent more than a manual toll lane. |
 |
2000s - As the size of cell phones and iPods were shrinking, Florida's Turnpike continued to expand with the additions of the Suncoast Parkway, Seminole Expressway and Western Beltway. In 2002, Florida's Turnpike became an Enterprise, functioning with a new business model to serve the transportation needs of its drivers, providing greater value for tolls paid by Florida's Turnpike customers. Florida's Turnpike Enterprise also implemented hurricane preparation plans, environmental partnerships and new incident management techniques. |
With an average of 1.8 million motorists each day, SunPass has revolutionized how business is done at Florida's Turnpike Enterprise by streamlining and simplifying the toll collection process. Nearly three million SunPass transponders have been processed and more than 60 percent of all toll transactions are now through the SunPass system. By the end of 2008, Florida's Turnpike Enterprise's goal is to have 75 percent of all toll transactions electronic. "I think the Turnpike's founding fathers would be very proud of Florida's Turnpike and what it has become 50 years later", said CEO and Executive Director Jim Ely at the golden anniversary celebration earlier this year.
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