The Sawgrass Interchange is a large highway interchange in Sunrise, Florida, United States.
| Sawgrass Interchange | |
|---|---|
 The Sawgrass Interchange, looking east | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Sunrise, Florida | |
| Coordinates | 26°07′12″N 80°20′45″W / 26.119889°N 80.345959°W |
| Roads at junction | |
| Construction | |
| Type | Stack interchange |
| Spans | 70 |
| Constructed | 1986–1989 |
| Opened | 1989 |
| Maintained by | FDOT |
History
editThe Sawgrass Interchange was built between 1986 and 1989.[1][2] The interchange opened in late 1989.[2] The interchange was constructed at a cost of $52 million (1989 USD).[2] At the time of its opening, the interchange was the largest in Florida.[3]
In 2023, there was widespread concern when a social media post, which erroneously claimed that one of the interchange's bridges was structurally unsound because of a visible gap, went viral.[4][5] The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) inspected the bridge and found no structural defects; the "gap" was normal and intentionally constructed when the bridge was built in the 1980s, being the location of one of the bridge's expansion joints.[4][5]
Description
editThe Sawgrass Interchange is a large stack interchange. It serves as the junction point for three major expressways in South Florida: Interstate 75 (I-75), I-595 (the Port Everglades Expressway), and State Road 869 (SR 869, Sawgrass Expressway). SR 84 also travels through the interchange.[1]
The interchange also serves as both the western terminus I-595 and the southern terminus of SR 869, both of which merge into I-75. It also serves as the eastern terminus of Alligator Alley.[1]
Design
editThe Sawgrass Interchange consists of several bridges and 70 bridge spans—all of which are made of precast segmental concrete; the bridge spans range from 120 to 200 feet (37 to 61 m) and were constructed with 1,366 precast box girder segments.[1][6] The stack interchange occupies an area of approximately 550 acres (220 ha).[3]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d "I-75 / I-595 Sawgrass Interchange". Corven Engineering. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ a b c "I-595-Sawgrass Interchange Nears Completion". Sun Sentinel. Deerfield Beach, Florida. December 25, 1989. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "I-75/I-595/Sawgrass Expressway Interchange". Bergeron Land Development. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ a b Medina, Dani (July 18, 2023). "'Gaps' in Florida bridge are normal, FDOT says". FOX 35 Orlando. Orlando, Florida: WOFL-TV. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "Concerns over possible crack on I-595 and Sawgrass Interchange bridge". CBS Miami. Miami, Florida: WFOR-TV. July 17, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ Tang, M. C.; Bellevue, L.; Towell, P. J.; Algner, E. (1990). "Construction of the I-75/I-595 Interchange, Broward County, Florida". Developments in Short and Medium Span Bridge Engineering: Third International Conference on Short and Medium Span Bridges. Toronto: Canadian Society For Civil Engineering. pp. 413–421. ISBN 978-0-921303-14-5.
External links
edit
Media related to Sawgrass Interchange at Wikimedia Commons
