Interstate 75 is a part of the Interstate Highway System and runs from the Hialeah–Miami Lakes border, a few miles northwest of Miami, to Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I-75 begins its national northward journey near Miami, running along the western parts of the Miami metropolitan area before traveling westward across Alligator Alley, resuming its northward direction in Naples, running along Florida's Gulf Coast, passing the cities of Fort Myers, Punta Gorda, Venice, Sarasota, and the Tampa Bay Area, before turning inward towards Ocala, Gainesville, and Lake City before leaving the state and entering Georgia. I-75 runs for 471mi in Florida, making it the longest interstate in any state east of the Mississippi River. The interstate maintains a speed limit of 70mph for its entire length in Florida.The portion of I-75 from Tampa northward was a part of the original 1955 Interstate Highway plans, with I-75's southern terminus at I-4's current western terminus. Planning to extend the interstate south to Miami began in 1968 after massive growth in Southwest Florida, which resulted in I-75 being realigned to travel on the eastern fringes of the Tampa Bay area, and the last portion of the highway was opened in 1993.
