MAP: Where to enter and exit the new Gateway Expressway

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — If you’ve been wasting your life away in traffic, you’ll enjoy this news.

The Gateway Expressway opened to motorists on Friday afternoon, allowing drivers to bypass traffic along I-275 in Pinellas County.

The $595-million project will ease congestion at the interstate’s choke points with two elevated toll roads, one that links the thoroughfare to U.S. Highway 19 and another that connects it to the Bayside Bridge.

The interstate was widened to add express lanes in each direction. The lanes will run through the median of I-275, starting just south of Gandy Boulevard and ending at 4th Street North at the Howard Frankland Bridge, where express lanes are still under construction.

Crews initially broke ground on the project in 2017. It was supposed to be finished by 2021, but supply bottlenecks along with COVID-19 and a hurricane, halted construction. Crews put the final touches on the project this week.

The expressway will be toll-free for the first seven days. Then starting on May 3, drivers will have to pay tolls using either SunPass or toll-by-plate. The tolls are between 28 and 86 cents, depending on the distance traveled on the road.

Drivers can access the expressway only at certain points. This map shows where they can enter and exit the roadways.

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