ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla — St. Johns County is one of the fastest growing counties in Florida and the roads are struggling to keep up.
As First Coast News reported last week, dozens of roads in the county are at or over-capacity.
One highway that is supposed to help is under construction. But it doesn't go very far right now.
Beyond the “road closed” signs is the start of a brand new highway, State Road 313.
The roadway hits U.S. 1 just north of the airport in Saint Augustine. There is a stoplight, and road signs and markings on the lanes. But right now, the road itself is only about a mile long.
Once complete, it will back up to the houses across the street from Timothy Johnson's house in the Mission Trace neighborhood in Saint Augustine.
He and his neighbors are concerned about the sound it will generate.
This new State Road 313 is essentially an extension of State Road 312 in Saint Augustine, picking up where that road ends and running north, bypassing downtown St. Augustine.
But some say that’s what I-95 already does.
Others, such as Johnson, question if this new road will really help St. Augustine traffic.
"I think the idea this will help alleviate the traffic downtown is delusional. People want to go to downtown," Johnson said.
Certainly traffic will increase over the years as more people move into St. Johns County and as new neighborhoods are built. In fact, there’s one going up right by the section of SR 313, where it hits U.S. 1.
According to the Florida Department of Transportation, construction of the southern portion of SR 313 will start this August and it's estimated to cost $12 million.
As for the northern portion, where it connects to U.S. 1, it remains a road for future traffic that right now stops short of any destination.