Suncoast Connector Background

SB 7068 — Under the provisions of SB 7068, in 2019 the Florida Legislature called for creation of a 330-mile system of tolled roads extending from Collier County to the Georgia border. Part of the M-CORES project, the Suncoast Connector was planned to extend 150 miles from Jefferson to Citrus County with the planning process impacting eight predominantly rural counties: Citrus, Dixie, Gilchrist, Jefferson, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, and Taylor.

​Suncoast Connector Task Force — On August 1, 2019, FDOT established the Suncoast Task Force. Florida Department of Transportation District 2 Secretary Greg Evans chaired this task force with Jason Peters serving as co-chair. Also involved in the process were representatives of the Tampa Bay, North Central and Apalachee Regional Planning Councils (RPCs), the Northwest Florida, Suwannee River and Southwest Florida Water Management Districts (WMDs), the Hernando/Citrus and Capital Regional Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), representatives of the counties and some municipalities and others. Former Policy and Planning Director Thomas Hawkins represented 1000 Friends of Florida on the Task Force. In addition to general task force responsibilities outlined in SB 7068, the legislation also specified that the Suncoast Connector Corridor Task Force should also:

“…evaluate design features and the need for acquisition of state conservation lands that mitigate the impacts of project construction within the respective corridors on:

• The water quality and quantity of springs, rivers, and aquifer recharge areas;

• Agricultural land uses;

• Wildlife habitat.”

“…evaluate design features and the need for acquisition of state conservation lands that mitigate the impacts of project construction within the respective corridors on:

The water quality and quantity of springs, rivers, and aquifer recharge areas;
Agricultural land uses;
Wildlife habitat.”

The task force participated in a series of meetings through 2019 and 2020, which culminated in a formal Task Force report. 1000 Friends provided extensive input throughout the process, but ultimately declined to sign on to the final report because it did not establish the need for and financial feasibility of the project, nor did it sufficiently protect significant natural and cultural resources or community character.

SB 100 — Due to major concerns raised by 1000 Friends and others, in 2021 the Florida Legislature passed SB 100, which basically terminated the overall M-CORES project. Pursuant to this legislation, the Florida Department of Transportation is still required to upgrade and expand U.S. 19 from Citrus County to Interstate 10 in Madison County, building on the proposed M-CORES Suncoast Corridor Extension. This segment will go through FDOT’s planning process, but there is no requirement for the Department to report back to the Legislature. The legislation created F.S. 339.67 U.S. 19 controlled access facilities. According to FDOT, this legislation establishes the need for a free flow of traffic, requiring the Department to “…develop and include in the work program the construction of controlled access facilities as necessary to achieve free flow of traffic on U.S. 19, beginning at the terminus of the Suncoast Parkway 2, Phase 3, north predominantly along U.S. 19 to a logical terminus on Interstate 10 in Madison County.”

Segment 1: Red Level to South of Chiefland — As noted earlier, the first planned segment is from Red Level to CR 347 South of Chiefland, impacting Citrus and Levy counties. In November 2022, FDOT completed the documentation for the required Efficient Transportation Decision Making (ETDM) analysis and will be taking public input (contact Ryan Asmus at FDOT). The next phase will be the PD&E process, included in the current State Transportation Improvement Plan, with funding to be carried forward from the 2022-2023 fiscal year. Your active engagement is essential, and we will continue to update this page as more information is available.