US and ALT US 27 and 27/441

All photos on this page are courtesy Michael Summa, unless I mention otherwise. For example, the one above is from SPUI, taken in 2005 north of Lake Placid. It is clickable for a super-closeup.


The END! of US 27 in Miami at US 1, taken in 1976.


It's deja vu all over again, and to prevent any more tourists from getting lost, Florida has renumbered FL 27 to FL 997. This was taken in 1978.


Costa Ioannidis intrudes for a moment with what would be the highest-numbered US shield if it weren't a blatant error, paired with a horribly faded colored US 27 shield that has finally been replaced. This is on Palm Beach CR 880 WB, of course former FL 880 (or at least S-880) and once FL 80, where what is still FL 880 bears left and FL 717 continues straight. Now 80 follows a miles-long multiplex with US 441 for no good reason.


The first sign was taken in 1982 on CR 80A, old US 27, near the Palm Beach Co./Hendry Co. line. The second sign was taken on US 27 NB in Clewiston.


In Lake Wales, north of FL 60, in 1974. ALT US 27 goes through the towns of Lake Wales and Haines City, while the new US 27 bypasses them to the west.


Everything comes together in Haines City, but US 27 never joins the party. ALT US 27 moseys on back to its parent via US 17/92 for less than a mile. I believe this is also from 1974.


Old FL 50 is north of current FL 50, but it would be entirely sufficient just to call this CR 50 or even call the road "Old Route 50" and give it an unrelated number. My point is, this isn't Lake Old County. Courtesy J.P. Nasiatka.


Also from J.P., US 27 does meet US 19, and they even multiplex, but this is what happens when state routes are allowed to share the same number as U.S. Highways. So really, this is NB at FL 19 in Groveland.


FL 42 westbound in 1983 twice, then eastbound in 1974. FL 42 meets ALT US 27/441 in Weirsdale, where the old road (also FL 25) hugs the east shore of Lake Weir. The new multiplex bypasses the lake to the west. These photos give you a chance to compare how different photos can show different colors after 20-30 years, and no, the 10-year-older assembly did not use different colors than the newer one.


Courtesy J.P. Nasiatka, southbound in Williston. Wide US 27 leaves off-center US 41 here; ALT 27 is NORTH to the right, and since we're travelling south on US 27/41, it is modest and hides its true direction.

NB 2 miles outside Williston, 1974.


Costa Ioannidis' second and final intrusion on this page, a multiplex begins and a former FL state road heads to the right. Given that it's a two-digit designation and there is no longer a FL 49, I would bet this was originally a primary state highway and never made it to secondary status. Like so many others, though, the FL 49 shields got "C" patches, and then the county just copied that onto their own shield without even thinking of what the "C" really means. I don't see "SR" on all the FL shields.


ALT US 27 NB in Chiefland, 1978. US 129 begins here a block to the northwest, but does not multiplex with US 19/98 for that block. ALT US 27, on the other hand, sure does multiplex, all the way up to Perry where it rejoins US 27. Technically, even though it's even numbered, US 98 does run north-south in this part of Florida, but neither 98 nor 19 are ALTs, so ALT 27 should be below the other two shields.


The modern version of US 27 ALT NB at that intersection, courtesy J.P. Nasiatka - see that NORTH US 27 is signed to the right, when it is quite a few miles away.

Branford, 1984.


Sine Salad (to cop a phrase from C.C. Slater), northbound in Perry as late as 1989. For photos from this ALT US 27, visit the US 19/98 page (big link below). Note (if you haven't already) how ALT and other bannered routes have the reverse color scheme from the parent route.


Guess where! Northbound in 1978, with a very assertive county indeed.

Onto US 441 alone
Onto US 301 for the US 27/301/441 triplex
Onto US 19 and the US 19/98/ALT 27 triplex

Onto US 92 and US 17/92
Onto US 17 alone
Onto FL 50
Onto US 41
Onto US 98
Onto US 129
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