STOP The Proposed SR 54/56 Elevated Toll Road

  • by: Gary Anderson
  • recipient: Pasco County Board of County Commissioners, Florida Department of Transportation

In September 2013, the Florida DOT received an unsolicited proposal for the leasing for rights-of-way for the purposes of constructing, operating, and maintaining an elevated toll road in Pasco County along the 33 mile SR 54/56 corridor from US 19 to US 301. It would be the state’s first privately built and managed toll road.

On May 9, 2014, The Florida DOT officially rejected the unsolicited proposal.  However, the Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) still has an elevated toll road in the County's Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) and the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) has just granted URS Corporation an extension to Dec, 31, 2014, to complete a feasibility study for an elevated toll road of their own.  The possibility of an elevated toll road being built over the SR-54/56 corridor IS NOT DEAD!

Pasco Fiasco is the name of our activist group which strongly opposes any elevated toll road whether built with private or public funds.  We are homeowners and small business owners who believe that an elevated roadway will adversely impact our quality of life and threaten established businesses. Please become fully informed by accessing the information within the Pasco Fiasco website and support our efforts by signing this petition.

When signing this petition, please include in the optional comment box, your community or business name and the city or town where you are located.

Example:

Gary Anderson

Ivy Lake Estates - Odessa, FL

This will help us determine the areas of the 54/56 corridor with the most concern.  You may then add any other personal comment.

Join the Pasco Fiasco mailing list by sending an email to pascofiasco@hotmail.com and receive the latest updates from our organization.

We oppose the planned elevated toll road on SR 54/56 for the following reasons:



  • SR 54/56 is a poor choice for an elevated super highway proposed to run from US 19 to I75 and beyond. SR 54/56 is located in the most densely populated part of Pasco County and has many successful thriving communities. Real estate values in all communities in southern Pasco County will be negatively impacted by a super highway running within hundreds of yards of communities along SR 54/56

  • This project is an overreaction to relatively minor traffic concerns that can be solved through less drastic measures such as better traffic controls and the judicial use of overpasses and flyovers where appropriate.

  • Unknown impact upon sinkhole activity because of this over-construction along a 33 mile route in Pasco County

  • Residents of Pasco will endure endless hardships and inconveniences during and after the construction of this super highway. Examples to look to are construction along US 19 and the recent expansion of SR 54.

  • Hundreds of established businesses along the SR54/56 corridor will experience revenue loss during and after the construction of this $2 billion dollar project.

  • Residents of South Pasco County don't want a concrete edifice like the Selmon Expressway in their backyard. People moved here because of the natural beauty and less urban characteristics of Pasco County.

  • This toll road is a tax hidden as a toll road. Pasco County has one of the lowest per capita incomes in Florida and this additional toll burden will negatively affect low and middle income families.

  • A consulting group, Urban Land Institute, hired by Pasco County for a fee of $125,000, recommended against proceeding with this project and said this road would have a very negative impact.

  • The human environmental effects on the adjacent residential communities from the sound projected from a roadway 30 feet above the ground.

  • There will be adverse environmental effects of nighttime lights being projected into the adjacent woods and residential communities from 30 feet in the air.

  • SR 54/56 should not be the only east-west corridor in case of a natural disaster evacuation and to more evenly distribute traffic flow throughout Pasco County and Tampa Bay region.

  • It is understood that future traffic needs to be addressed, but not now. Presently, smaller scale options are more viable solutions.

  • Other options need to be considered that do not negatively impact the quality of life of the tens of thousands southern Pasco County residents.

Update #29 years ago
!!RALLY POSTPONED!! Pasco Fiasco has decided to postpone the Rally planned for May 19 at Sunlake High School. This decision was made after Pasco Fiasco received the formal written statement from FDOT over the weekend, officially rejecting the unsolicited bid to build the SR-54/56 elevated toll road. Pasco County Planners still have the elevated toll road in their long range plan and Pasco Fiasco will shift its focus to removing that option from the plan.
Update #19 years ago
Pasco Fiasco is hosting a Rally to demonstrate our strong opposition to the SR-54/56 Elevated Toll Road. Join us to send a loud & clear message to the Pasco County Commissioners & FDOT that this toll road is not wanted here. Invited speakers include Pasco County Commissioners & some candidates, local business owners & homeowners presenting their views and how we can defeat this proposal. The Rally is set for Monday, May 19, 2014, 7:00 PM, Sunlake High School, 3023 Sunlake Blvd, Land O’ Lakes.
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