U.S. Route 17 passes through the center of town as Orange Avenue and leads north to downtown Jacksonville and south to Palatka. State Road 16 departs west from the center of the city and leads to Starke. SR 16 leaves eastbound from US 17 south of the city center and crosses the St. Johns River by the Shands Bridge, leading to St. Augustine to the east. By the late 2020s, the First Coast Expressway, a major toll bypass road connecting I-10 and I-95, is expected to pass to the west and south of Green Cove Springs.