State Road 29 (SR 29) is a

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...

that runs north–south through

Southwest Florida Southwest Florida is the region along the southwest Gulf coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is known for its beaches, subtropical landscape, and winter resort economy. Definitions of the region vary, though its boundaries are genera ...

. It begins in Carnestown (just north of Everglades City) and runs north to a point just south of

Palmdale Palmdale is a city in northern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city lies in the Antelope Valley of Southern California. The San Gabriel Mountains separate Palmdale from the Los Angeles Basin to the south. On August 24, 1962 ...

. A rural road, it runs mostly through uninhabited farmland in its northern half, and along wetlands in its southern half. The route previously continued south of Carnestown to Everglades City and

Chokoloskee Chokoloskee is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located at the edge of the Ten Thousand Islands in Collier County, Florida, United States. The population was 345 at the 2020 census, down from 359 at the 2010 census. I ...

, which has since become County Road 29 (CR 29).

Route description

County Road 29

CR 29 begins on Chokoloskee Island at SR 29's historic southern terminus, where it known as Smallwood Avenue (named for Ted Smallwood, who opened the areas historic general store which is now a museum). From Chokoloksee, CR 29 crosses a

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet T ...

across Chokoloskee Bay to Everglades City. In Everglades City, it turns east along Broadway and north along Collier Avenue, where it continues out of the city and terminating at

U.S. Route 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miam ...

in Carnestown.

State Road 29

SR 29 officially begins at an intersection with

(

Tamiami Trail The Tamiami Trail () is the southernmost of U.S. Highway 41 (US 41) from State Road 60 (SR 60) in Tampa to US 1 in Miami. A portion of the road also has the hidden designation of State Road 90 (SR 90). The north� ...

) in Carnestown. From there, it travels north along the western edge of the

Big Cypress National Preserve Big Cypress National Preserve is a United States National Preserve located in South Florida, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) west of Miami on the Atlantic coastal plain. The Big Cypress, along with Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas, beca ...

and the eastern edge of the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Forest, which the road borders until it reaches

Interstate 75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end in 5, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, traveling from S ...

(Alligator Alley) at Miles City. SR 29 Bridge LaBelle

North of I-75, State Road 29 borders the

Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge The Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge is part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System, located in southwestern Florida, twenty miles east of Naples, Florida, Naples, in the upper segment of the Fakahatchee Strand of the Big ...

to the west and continues to border the Big Cypress National Preserve up to a point just south of Sunniland. SR 29 turns west briefly and back north through the city of

Immokalee Immokalee ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Collier County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,557 at the 2020 census, up from 24,154 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Naples–Marco Island metropol ...

, a small farming town with large migrant populations. SR 29 expands to four lanes in as it passes through central Immokalee along Main Street and North 15th Street. Just north of Immokalee, SR 29 is reduced to two lanes before intersecting with State Road 82, which travels west to

Fort Myers A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

. SR 29 continues due north through more agricultural areas until it reaches the city of

LaBelle Labelle was an American funk rock band that originated out of the Blue Belles, a girl group who were a popular vocal group of the 1960s and 1970s. The original group was formed after the disbanding of two rival girl groups in the area around ...

. SR 29 enters LaBelle along Main Street. It then comes to an intersection with SR 80, a transpeninsular route connecting Fort Myers and

West Palm Beach West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, Florida, Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lag ...

. SR 29 then turns east along SR 80 for one block before turning north again at Bridge Street. SR 29 then crosses the Caloosahatchee River on a bascule drawbridge. On the north side of the river, SR 29 intersects CR 78 and SR 78 before continuing north through rural Glades County. SR 29 comes to its northern terminus at an intersection with

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

(unsigned SR 25), just south of

History

State Road 29 was extended from Immokalee to Everglades City in the 1920s around the same time as the construction of the

. Its construction was championed by

Barron Collier Barron Gift Collier (March 23, 1873 – March 13, 1939) was an American advertising entrepreneur who became the largest private landowner and developer in Florida, as well as the owner of a chain of hotels, bus lines, several banks, newspapers, ...

as a land connection to Everglades City (the county seat of Collier County at the time). The route was originally designated SR 164 until it was changed to SR 29 during the

1945 Florida State Road renumbering On June 11, 1945, Florida's state roads were renumbered. The State roads in Florida before 1945, old system numbered routes in the order they were legislated, while the Florida State Roads, new system used a grid. Notes See also

*Flor ...

. SR 29 was extended from Everglades City to Chokoloskee in 1956 upon the completion of a

across Chokoloskee Bay. Swing Bridge in LaBelle Florida

South of Immokalee, SR 29 ran alongside the now-abandoned

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967, it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast ...

Haines City Branch The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's Haines City Branch was a railroad line running from their main line in Haines City, Florida south through southern Central Florida. Track would stretch as far south as Everglades City, Florida, Everglades City u ...

from Harrisburg (just south of

) to Everglades City, which was also built in the 1920s. Part of this line was once the Deep Lake Railroad, which was once owned by Barron Collier. The railroad was removed from Sunniland south to Everglades City in 1957, and the rest of it was removed in the 1980s. Old and new SR 29 bridge in LaBelle

SR 29's current bascule bridge over the Caloosahatchee River in LaBelle was built in 1959, replacing a swing bridge. The swing bridge was just west of the bascule bridge connecting Desoto Avenue and Main Street on the south side and North Bridge Street on the north side of the river. The construction of the bascule bridge resulted in the realignment of SR 29 from Main Street to Bridge Street in LaBelle. The

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 U.S. state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the power ...

removed a large number of

State Roads State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

from its list for state control and maintenance to county control in the 1980s. SR 29 south of US 41 to Everglades City and Chokoloskee was given to county control at this time, becoming CR 29.General Highway Map, Collier County, April 1966, reprinted January 1976
/ref> When plans were made to upgrade Alligator Alley to carry Interstate 75 in 1973, State Road 29 was not initially planned to have an interchange with the freeway due to environmental concerns. This decision was reversed in 1989 during construction of I-75 and interchange ramps were included after steps were taken to protect the endangered Florida panther.

Major intersections

Related routes

LaBelle truck route

State Road 29 Truck is a truck detour along South Bridge Street. It begins at the northwest corner of LaBelle Airport south of the southeast corner of SR 29 and CR 80A. SR 29 Truck also intersects CR 80A, and runs along the east side of SR 29 until it reaches SR 80 near the Old Hendry County Courthouse.

County Road 29A (Collier County)

County Road 29A is a route bypassing

to the northeast. It runs mostly southeast to northwest, and is named New Market Road. County Road 29A begins as New Market Road East, as a straight south to north road until it approaches a local fire station on the northeast corner of an access road to Immokalee Airport, and curves to the northwest. The road serves as the headquarters for the Immokalee State Farmer's Market. At Charlotte Street New Market Road East becomes New Market Road West. The straight northwestern to southeastern pattern continues until it curves to the west and approaches the terminus at SR 29 and Westclox Road north of the city, but not before a northbound turning ramp forks off to the right.

County Road 29A (Hendry County)

County Road 29A is a short, former segment of SR 29 in

. It runs north along North Main Street from the SR 29/80 multiplex at the Old Hendry County Courthouse to Park Avenue, where it turns east terminating a block later at Bridge Street (SR 29) at the foot of the drawbridge over

Caloosahatchee River The Caloosahatchee River is a river on the southwest Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of Florida in the United States, approximately long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National ...

. This segment of Main Street is the former alignment of SR 29 when the old swing bridge over the river was in service.

References

External links

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Florida Route Log (SR 29)
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