Study shows Florida has most toll roads in the nation, with more to come

Florida has the most toll roads in the nation, with Orange County having the most per square mile in the state.

There are 719 miles of Florida toll roads, reports LobbyTools, and Central Florida is at the epicenter.

Orange County boasts 153 miles of toll roads, possibly making it an area with the most toll roads in the country.

“Orlando has got a more fully developed, elaborate set of toll roads than really any other metro area in the U.S.,” says Peter Samuel, founder of the Frederick, Maryland-based Toll Road News, to the Orlando Sentinel.

According to LobbyTools, FDOT is responsible for approximately 122,088 miles of roads throughout seven districts. in 2014, the Florida Turnpike accommodated about 193 million miles of motorist traffic.

Even as most roads are local, the state highway system accounts for more than half of Florida’s total traffic. And more toll roads are on the way.

A preliminary plan by the Central Florida Expressway Authority for 2040 proposes an additional 80 miles of roadway, at an estimated cost of between $3.2 billion to $4.5 billion.

States are increasingly turning to toll roads as federal transportation dollars begin to dry up.

“[Toll roads] started years ago when everybody began to understand it was underfunded when it came to building new [road] networks,” Central Florida Expressway Authority chair Welton Cadwell said in a Sentinel interview.