CLAY COUNTY, Fla. \u2013 Clay County drivers are days away from a major new commuting option. The Florida Department of Transportation expects to open the final Clay County segment of the First Coast Expressway by noon Monday, June 29. Once open, the expressway will connect three northeast Florida counties, completing a project that began in late 2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the final Clay County segment of the First Coast Expressway,\u201d said Jacob Pickering, public information officer for FDOT. \u201cClay County has really experienced a lot of improved efficiency with this First Coast Expressway \u2014 another option for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
New segment runs between US 17, Leonard C. Taylor Parkway<\/p>\n
The new stretch will allow drivers to travel the expressway from US 17 to Leonard C. Taylor Parkway. New traffic signals on Leonard C. Taylor Parkway will also be activated Monday, giving drivers coming from the east the ability to head north directly onto the expressway \u2014 including right off the Shands Bridge.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce they get off the Shands Bridge, they can immediately go north and access the First Coast Expressway right from the bridge now,\u201d Pickering said. \u201cThis is that final connection that connects folks all the way down right to the Shands Bridge up to the First Coast Expressway at US 17.\u201d<\/p>\n
The First Coast Expressway is already open from US 17 north to Interstate 10, meaning Monday\u2019s opening completes the full Clay County corridor.<\/p>\n
Three new bridges, electronic tolling highlight segment\u2019s features<\/p>\n
The new segment includes three new bridges, a brand-new drainage system and an all-electronic toll facility. Drivers without a SunPass can still use the road \u2014 the system will automatically read their license plate.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat this is, is really good for the state of Florida, because what we\u2019re doing is giving that option and proving to our motorists on these roadways that we\u2019re thinking of you guys and we\u2019re trying to give you new options here,\u201d Pickering said.<\/p>\n
Green Cove Springs, St. Johns County drivers expected to benefit most<\/p>\n
Drivers in Green Cove Springs and St. Johns County are expected to see the greatest impact from the new segment. US 17, which runs through the center of Green Cove Springs, is known for heavy congestion during peak travel hours. The new expressway gives commuters an alternative to crowded surface roads like Blanding Boulevard and US 17.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re hoping that will happen here for the folks who live in Green Cove, who maybe work in Orange Park or Jacksonville \u2014 this will give them a new option to get home quicker,\u201d Pickering said.<\/p>\n
Residents of St. Johns County communities such as Fruit Cove will also benefit, gaining quicker access to the expressway than ever before.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you live in St. Johns County, you can now access the First Coast Expressway much sooner than you could before, right at the bottom of the Shands Bridge,\u201d Pickering said. \u201cThat really gives folks in Fruit Cove and Green Cove this brand-new option to really access that urban parkway really fast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Limited access design aims to keep rush hour congestion in check<\/p>\n
Because the road is a limited-access toll facility, FDOT does not expect the kind of peak-hour backups common on surface roads.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is limited access, so we don\u2019t expect peak rush hours to build up on this section of the roadway,\u201d Pickering said.<\/p>\n
As drivers get familiar with the new segment, FDOT is urging patience and caution. The department\u2019s Target Zero initiative \u2014 aimed at eliminating fatalities and crashes on Florida roadways \u2014 remains central to its mission.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just really want to tell drivers to be safe out there, and as folks get used to this new roadway segment in the next week, give it some time and be patient with everybody around you,\u201d Pickering said.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CLAY COUNTY, Fla. \u2013 Clay County drivers are days away from a major new commuting option. The Florida…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":321271,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[96687,116,118,117],"class_list":["post-321270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-first-coast-expressway","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/321270","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=321270"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/321270\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/321271"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=321270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=321270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=321270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}