[2] Officially, the stretch is signed as a number of existing local roads that were utilized as parts of the route of SR 116.

Due to rapid growth in the East Arlington area and near SR 105 (Zoo Parkway/Heckscher Drive), a connection from the I-295 corridor to Naval Station Mayport was seen as a great need.

These back-ups often took hours to clear, and with the rapid growth in the area, combined with the need for another hurricane evacuation route, a new road with a bridge over the Intercoastal Waterway was a necessity.

The base needed a more-direct route from the corridor since it was easy for new people to the area to get lost on previous directions from exits on I-295, such as SR 10 (Atlantic Boulevard) and Monument Road.

The road includes the Charles E. Bennett Memorial Bridge over the Intercoastal Waterway, connecting San Pablo Island to the mainland.