State Road 815 (Florida)
Encyclopedia
Once a part of the original Dixie Highway
Dixie Highway
The Dixie Highway was a United States automobile highway, first planned in 1914 to connect the US Midwest with the Southern United States. It was part of the National Auto Trail system, and grew out of an earlier Miami to Montreal highway. The final result is better understood as a small network of...

, the former State Road 815 was a 7.76-mile-long north–south route that served - and still serves - as a commuter
Commuting
Commuting is regular travel between one's place of residence and place of work or full time study. It sometimes refers to any regular or often repeated traveling between locations when not work related.- History :...

 alternative to the nearby Biscayne Boulevard (US 1-SR 5
State Road 5 (Florida)
State Road 5 is a mostly-unsigned state highway in the state of Florida. It is mainly signed as U.S. Route 1 from its south end in Key West, Florida to Jacksonville, Florida, and U.S. Route 17 from Jacksonville to the Georgia state line at the Saint Marys River. U.S...

) that was part of the Florida State Roads system for five decades. Located entirely in Dade County
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...

, SR 815 was locally known as East Second Avenue. The southern terminus of SR 815 was an intersection of Southeast Second Avenue and Southeast Second Street at the Miami River
Miami River (Florida)
The Miami River is a river in the United States state of Florida that drains out of the Everglades and runs through the Downtown and the city of Miami. The long river flows from the terminus of the Miami Canal at Miami International Airport to Biscayne Bay...

; the northern terminus was an intersection of Northeast Second Avenue and North Gratigny Road (SR 924).

Route description

State Road 815 started at the intersection of Southeast Second Avenue and Southeast Second Street, just north of the Miami River
Miami River (Florida)
The Miami River is a river in the United States state of Florida that drains out of the Everglades and runs through the Downtown and the city of Miami. The long river flows from the terminus of the Miami Canal at Miami International Airport to Biscayne Bay...

. SR 815 took Southeast Second Avenue north, where it became Northeast Second Avenue jut two blocks north of the southern terminus at Flagler Street. SR 815 continued through Central Miami business, intersecting with Interstate 395
Interstate 395 (Florida)
Interstate 395 is a long, elevated Interstate Highway that connects Interstate 95 in the west with the MacArthur Causeway in the east in the Miami area via the Midtown Interchange...

 and then Interstate 195
Interstate 195 (Florida)
Interstate 195 is a spur expressway connecting Interstate 95 in the west with Miami Beach in the east, crossing Biscayne Bay by traveling over the Julia Tuttle Causeway, named after Miami founder Julia Tuttle....

. Leaving Central Miami, it continues through residential streets, intersecting SR 944 and SR 934 before leaving Miami for Miami Shores. Continuing north, it intersects SR 932. In North Miami, it forms the eastern boundary for Barry University
Barry University
Barry University is a private, Catholic university, which was founded in 1940 in Miami Shores, Florida, a suburb north of Downtown Miami. It is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami....

 for several blocks before intersecting SR 909 just one block south of the northern terminus of North Gratigny Road (SR 924).

History

State Road 815 was established in the 1945 Florida State Road renumbering
1945 Florida State Road renumbering
On June 11, 1945, Florida's state roads were renumbered. The old system numbered routes in the order they were legislated, while the new system used a grid.For more detailed information on where each road was, go to the corresponding page.-See also:...

. After the construction and opening of Interstate 95
Interstate 95 in Florida
Interstate 95 is the main Interstate Highway on the east coast of the United States; it serves the Atlantic coast of Florida. It begins at a partial interchange with U.S. Highway 1 just south of downtown Miami, and heads north past Daytona Beach and Jacksonville to the Georgia state line at the St...

 and the Downtown Distributor (SR 970
State Road 970 (Florida)
State Road 970, also known as the Downtown Distributor, is a short elevated freeway connecting Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 in Downtown Miami.-Route description:...

), traffic patterns in downtown Miami were altered, reducing SR 815's importance. Despite remaining a commuting and commercial alternative, the significance of SR 815 faded by the 1980's. First, the designation was removed from the southern half of the route; by 1994 it was barely noted on AAA
American Automobile Association
AAA , formerly known as the American Automobile Association, is a federation of 51 independently operated motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a not-for-profit member service organization with more than 51 million members. AAA provides services to its members such as travel, automotive,...

 and Rand McNally
Rand McNally
Rand McNally is an American publisher of maps, atlases, textbooks, and globes for travel, reference, commercial, and educational uses. It also provides online consumer street maps and directions, as well as commercial transportation routing software and mileage data...

 road maps; the following year, the Florida Department of Transportation
Florida Department of Transportation
The Florida Department of Transportation is a decentralized agency charged with the establishment, maintenance, and regulation of public transportation in the state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the powers of the Florida State Road Department...

 transferred SR 815 maintenance responsibilities to Dade
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...

 (now Miami-Dade) County control.

Major junctions

The entire route was located in Miami-Dade County
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...

.
Location Mile Destinations Notes
Miami 0.00 Southern terminus
0.11
0.91
2.64
2.70
4.18
5.21 Eastbound SR 934
5.36 Westbound SR 934
Miami Shores
Miami Shores, Florida
Miami Shores is a village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The population was 10,380 at the 2000 census. As of 2005, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 10,040....

6.74
North Miami
North Miami, Florida
North Miami is a suburban city located in northeast Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, about north of Miami. The city lies on Biscayne Bay and hosts the Biscayne Bay Campus of Florida International University, and the North Miami campus of Johnson & Wales University...

7.66
7.76 Northern terminus
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