State Road 30A (SR 30A) is a

Florida Department of Transportation The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is a decentralized agency charged with the establishment, maintenance, and regulation of public transportation in the state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the powers of t ...

designation shared by four alternate routings of SR 30 in the

Florida panhandle The Florida Panhandle (also West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida; it is a Salient (geography), salient roughly long and wide, lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia (U. ...

. Two segments have SR 30A signage; the other two do not as they are segments of U.S. Route 98 (US 98). Three of the four SR 30A segments are next to the shore of the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

for most (if not all) of their length.

CR 30A: Point Washington State Forest segment

Just west of

Santa Rosa Beach Santa Rosa Beach is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Walton County, Florida, Walton County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Santa R ...

, near East Hewlett Road, CR 30A branches off Reddick Road (US 98/SR 30) and heads southeastward toward the shore of the

. While US 98/SR 30 continues through the heart of Point Washington State Forest, CR 30A follows the shoreline, passing through Grayton Beach and Seaside, before rejoining SR 30 near Inlet Beach. While US 98/SR 30 spans the length of Point Washington State Forest, CR 30A doesn't avoid it completely: the westernmost mile (1.6 km) forms the boundary between the state forest and

Topsail Hill Preserve State Park Topsail Hill Preserve State Park is a Florida State Park located in Santa Rosa Beach, ten miles (16 km) east of Destin, off U.S. 98, in northwestern Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United S ...

. Continuing along the Gulf of Mexico, CR 30A cuts through approximately three miles (4.8 km) of state forest between Blue Mountain Beach and Seaside and another of Deer Lake State Park to the southeast of Seagrove Beach.

SR 30A: Panama City Beach segment

About to the east of the eastern terminus of the Point Washington State Forest segment of SR 30A, and west of Hollywood Beach (not to be confused with the city of

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

between

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

and

Fort Lauderdale A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

), US 98 and (unsigned) SR 30 separate. While SR 30 continues along the shore of the Gulf of Mexico as Front Beach Road, US 98 continues roughly inland (as Panama City Beach Parkway) with the unsigned FDOT designation SR 30A. The Panama City Beach Segment ends from the western terminus, as traffic on US 98/SR 30A rejoins SR 30 on the approach to the Hathaway Bridge crossing St. Andrews Bay and entering

Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...

State Road 392A

As the 16-mile-long SR 30 parallels the

Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Texas, Louisiana, Mississ ...

, it passes through Hollywood Beach, Sunnyside,

Laguna Beach Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California, in the United States. It is known for its mild year-round climate, scenic coves, environmental preservation efforts, and a ...

, and Panama City Beach—popular " Spring Break" stops for U.S. college students—before curving back inland to rejoin US 98. The popularity of the Panama City Beach

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shel ...

front (with

Miracle Strip Amusement Park Miracle Strip Amusement Park was a theme park located in Panama City Beach, Florida, which operated from 1963 to 2004. The highlight of the park was The Starliner Roller Coaster, an "out-and-back" wooden coaster designed by John Allen upon the ...

) has often resulted in the overloading of Front Beach Road and the prompting of FDOT's "creation" of a second bypass of the downtown area: the three-mile (5 km) long SR 392A. Unlike SR 30A, SR 392A is entirely within the city limits of Panama City Beach, no more than inland from the Gulf of Mexico. Locally known as Hutchison Boulevard, it is signed east–west. The western terminus is an intersection with SR 30 Alternate near Youpon Road; the eastern terminus is an intersection with SR 30 at Thomas Drive.

SR 30A: US 98 through Panama City and Callaway

On the eastern approach to the Hathaway Bridge, SR 30 and US 98 separate at the corner of 18th Street and Beck Avenue in

. US 98 and SR 30A continues eastward along 15th Street, passing through Cedar Grove and

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

before a southward 90-degree turn onto North Tyndall Parkway in Callaway. As US 98/SR 30A approach the New DuPont Bridge across

East Bay The East Bay is the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area and includes cities along the eastern shores of the San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The region has grown to include inland communities in Alameda and Contra Costa countie ...

, its run ends with the merge with Business US 98/SR 30 near Long Point.

US 98 Business and SR 30 in Panama City and Callaway

While US 98/SR 30A follows 15th Street through Panama City and Callaway before reaching North Tyndall Parkway, US 98 Business and SR 30 follows Ninth Street, Beach Dr, Sixth Street, and Fifth Street before curving southward (near School Avenue) and eastward (through

Parker Parker may refer to: Persons * Parker (given name) * Parker (surname) Places Place names in the United States *Parker, Arizona *Parker, Colorado * Parker, Florida * Parker, Idaho * Parker, Kansas * Parker, Missouri * Parker, North Carolina *Park ...

before rejoining US 98 on the approach to the New Dupont Bridge. The merge marks the eastern terminus of the US 98 Business.

SR 30B: Pensacola

State Road 30B is an unsigned road in

Pensacola Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ci ...

known locally as Gregory Square. Running east from Gregory Street, it dead ends at a culdesac a mere later. The road was once part of State Road 30, until it was realigned.

Former and current SR 30A: a loop near Port St. Joe

After FDOT started phasing out a set of

Florida State Roads The State Highway System of the U.S. state of Florida comprises the roads maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) or a toll authority. The components are referred to officially as state roads, abbreviated as SR. Hist ...

in the late 1970s and early 1980s and reverted them to county maintenance, many State Roads disappeared from road maps, and many others were greatly truncated or transformed. One such drastically-affected road was SR 30A, which formed a loop in

Gulf A gulf is a large inlet from the ocean into the landmass, typically with a narrower opening than a bay, but that is not observable in all geographic areas so named. The term gulf was traditionally used for large highly-indented navigable bodie ...

and

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

counties. Historically, SR 30A veered southward from US 98/SR 30 south of

Port St. Joe Port St. Joe is a city located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 98 and State Road 71 and the county seat of Gulf County, Florida. As of the 2020 census,the population was 3,357. This was a decline from 3,644 as of the 2000 census. Histo ...

, near the communities of Oak Grove and Ward Ridge, and followed Sand Bar Road along the

shoreline A shore or a shoreline is the fringe of land at the edge of a large body of water, such as an ocean, sea, or lake. In physical oceanography, a shore is the wider fringe that is geologically modified by the action of the body of water past a ...

St. Joseph Bay St. Joseph Bay is a bay on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The bay is located in Gulf County between Apalachicola and Panama City. Port St. Joe is located on St. Joseph Bay. St. Joseph Bay is bounded on the east by the mainland, o ...

past the St. Joseph Point Lighthouse before turning to the east to follow the shore of Bay San Blas, Indian Lagoon, and Saint Vincent Sound before rejoining US 98/SR 30 east of Nine Mile. Today, only the north–south section is still signed SR 30A. The east–west stretch is now County Road 30A.

Former State Road 30B

State Road 30B (SR 30B) existed on the St. Joseph Peninsula and is known locally as Indian Pass Road. It was a scenic route, with the western terminus at an intersection with SR 30A and an eastern terminus at the Indian Pass campground.

State Road 30E

State Road 30E (SR 30E) exists on the St. Joseph Peninsula and is known locally as Cape San Blas Road. It's a scenic route, with the western terminus in

St. Joseph Peninsula State Park T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park is a Florida State Park on the St. Joseph Peninsula near Port St. Joe. It is located off U.S. 98. Recreational activities The park has such amenities as beaches, picnicking areas, cabins, ...

near Eagle Harbor. Eastbound motorists drive by the T.H. Stone Memorial and the

Cape San Blas lighthouse The Cape San Blas Light is a lighthouse in the state of Florida in the United States. There were four built between 1849 and 1885. It was located at Cape San Blas in the northwestern part of the state. Due to beach erosion and weather damage ...

as they approach the terminus of SR 30E, an intersection with the SR 30A loop roughly a mile south of St. Joseph Point Lighthouse.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Scenic Highway 30A (Florida Scenic Highways)

30A.com

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