State Road 30 (SR 30) is the mostly hidden

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 for most of US 98 from the Florida-

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

state line to east of

Perry, Florida Perry is a city in Taylor County, Florida, United States. As of 2010, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 7,017. It is the county seat. The city was named for Madison Perry, fourth Governor of the State of Florida and a Confe ...

. In a 14-mile-long stretch west of

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 ...

, US 98 and SR 30 are separated by less than one mile (1.6 km), with SR 30 on Front Beach Road along the shore of the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an 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 the United ...

in Hollywood Beach,

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, and US 98 inland (as unsigned State Road 30A) along Panama City Beach Parkway bypassing the beach communities. In 2009, the Florida DOT began signing Front Beach Road as SR 30, and removed US 98 Alt signs. In Panama City, and Callaway, US 98 and SR 30 take different courses as they pass through the two cities, in which SR 30 becomes Business US 98 and US 98 becomes unsigned SR 30A (for more details on the routing through Panama City and Callaway, click

here Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to: Software * Here Technologies, a mapping company * Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here Technologies, Here Television * Here TV (form ...

). Both at the western and eastern end of the split, US 98 and SR 30 merge upon approach of a bridge (on Panama City Parkway crossing Saint Andrew Bay to the west; and, to the east, New Dupont Bridge crossing East Bay for access to – and through –

Tyndall Air Force Base Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt. Frank Benjamin Tyndall. The base operating unit and host wing is the 325th Fighter Wing (325 ...

). The eastern terminus of SR 30 is an intersection with

US 19 U.S. Route 19 (US 19) is a north–south U.S. Highway in the Eastern United States. Despite encroaching Interstate Highways, the route has remained a long-haul road, connecting the Gulf of Mexico with Lake Erie. The highway's souther ...

US 27 U.S. Route 27 (US 27) is a north–south United States Highway in the southern and midwestern United States. The southern terminus is at U.S. Route 1 in Florida, US 1 in Miami, Florida. The northern terminus is at Interstate 69 in India ...

- SR 20 in

Perry Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also mad ...

. There, a motorist driving eastbound on US 98 (West Hampton Springs Avenue) can turn southward onto its continuation on Byron Butler Parkway ( Alternate US 27-

-US 98). Motorists continuing eastward on East Hampton Springs Avenue travel along ''southbound''

- SR 20 toward

Mayo Mayo often refers to: * Mayonnaise, often shortened to "mayo" * Mayo Clinic, a medical center in Rochester, Minnesota, United States Mayo may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Mayo Peak, Marie Byrd Land Australia * Division of Mayo, an Aust ...

, Alachua, and Gainesville.

History

FDOT announced in January 2010, near the end of the Pensacola Bay Bridge's 50-year

design life The design life of a component or product is the period of time during which the item is expected by its designers to work within its specified parameters; in other words, the life expectancy of the item. It is not always the actual length of tim ...

, that the bridge was structurally deficient and would have to be replaced within six years. As of 2011, a study is underway to determine the "feasibility, location, and conceptual design" of a replacement bridge. As of February 2013, plans have begun to replace the bridge with construction beginning within two years, at a cost of $595.6 million, on a course slightly to the west of the existing bridge. The new bridge, like the current one, will not charge a toll. As of February 2020, construction of the new bridge is complete with only the pedestrian portion to be completed with the old bridge being dismantled to make way for the parallel bridge to begin construction. However, just months later during

Hurricane Sally Hurricane Sally was a destructive and slow-moving Atlantic hurricane, which was the first hurricane to make landfall in the U.S. state of Alabama since Ivan in 2004, coincidentally on the same date in the same place. The eighteenth named storm, ...

on September 15-16, 2020, a barge got stuck under the bridge before a crane fell onto one span of the bridge; this knocked almost the entire span into

Pensacola Bay Pensacola Bay is a bay located in the northwestern part of Florida, United States, known as the Florida Panhandle. The bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, is located in Escambia County and Santa Rosa County, adjacent to the city of Pensacola ...

, rendering the bridge completely unusable; repairs were quickly arranged, with the bridge planned to be reopened in March 2021.

Major intersections

Related routes

Bay County Road 30

County Road 30 (CR 30) runs along a segment of Front Beach Road in

. The former section of SR 30 was relinquished by the

in exchange for County Road 390. CR 30 runs from the junction with U.S. 98/ SR 30A/SR 30 eastbound and ends at the intersection with Deluna Place on the city line of Panama City Beach, where SR 30 resumes.

State Road 30A

State Road 30A (SR 30A) is a

designation shared by four alternate routings of SR 30 in the Florida panhandle. 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

for most (if not all) of their length.

Walton County Road 30A

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, County Road 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.

Gulf County Road 30A & Franklin County Road 30A

County Road 30A in Gulf and Franklin counties is a former segment of SR 30A. The road follows the shoreline of Bay San Blas, Indian Lagoon, and Saint Vincent Sound from the junction with SR 30A and SR 30E to US 98.

State Road 30B

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. Gregory Street is maintained by FDOT and is inventoried as part of State Road 30, but it is not a signed road.

Gulf County Road 30B

County Road 30B (CR 30B), formerly State Road 30B, runs along St. Joseph Peninsula and is known locally as Indian Pass Road. It was a scenic route, with the western terminus at an intersection with CR 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.

Bay County Roads 30A, 30B, 30C, 30H, and 30P

In Panama City Beach, a series of former state roads exist that were relinquished to Bay County control, all of which were alternatives to State Road 30. All routes are named after their former state road numbers, except for CR 30P, which is the former SR 30F.

References

{{Reflist 030 030 030 030 030 030 030 030 030 030 030 030 U.S. Route 98