Your Citrus County road guide

Note: Just Wright Citrus is on vacation, but we thought the timing was right to revisit an oldie but goodie: Understanding Citrus County road names and numbers, and when to use the number and when to use the name.

We have newcomers and visitors to our beautiful community who are confused with the street-naming lingo. Certainly understandable as there really is no logic to it at all. Maybe this little guide can help.​

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Since this blog first appeared in December 2021, I’ve added a few observations that I missed the first time. I removed two roads and added one. And I dropped the so-called trick question because it was dumb.


Saw a Soundoff in the Chronicle the other day from someone new to Citrus County who wishes people would say the name of roads, instead of the number. Remembering Lecanto Highway is easier than County Road 491.

I get it. I had the same problem when I moved to Citrus County 35 years ago. But we learn which roads are easier to remember by name and which ones by number.

So, to have a little fun, here are the number/names of several (not all) Citrus County roads. I’m providing the number and name. 

Feel free to offer your thoughts. Here we go:

— U.S. 41: Florida Avenue. Best known as U.S. 41, unless you’re between Inverness and Hernando, when it’s known for other words we can’t mention here.

— S.R. 44: Gulf to Lake Highway. 44. Just 44. Best when used with a name: 44 Inverness, 44 Walmart, 44 Lecanto, 44 parkway etc. In Crystal River, the city name is NE 5th Street, and I get confused every time it’s mentioned.

The name/number thing for these two is worse in Inverness because both roads come and go in all directions. The city has Main Street, but it’s hard to tell where, in normal conversation, Main Street ends and plain old 41 begins. 

You’re left with two choices: Either know whether your reference is 41 north or 41 south, 44 east or 44 west; OR, do what most of us do: Combine the number with a landmark.

“Take a left on 44 at the Burger King,” I’ve said roughly 3,000 times.

— S.R. 200: Carl G. Rose Highway. Or, plain old 200. As in, “Are they ever going to widen plain old 200?” (Answer: No.)

— U.S. 19: Suncoast Boulevard. Just…ugh. Another one where the number stands alone and rarely is used in a pleasant, complimentary way.

— C.R. 491: Lecanto Highway. It’s the number. Expect to hear it a lot with this new county commission.

— C.R. 486: Norvell Bryant Highway. Bryant was a rancher and real estate developer in the 1960s in Hernando and Inverness. He fought to get the county to build a road between Hernando and Lecanto and that’s why this one is named after him. Unfortunately for the Bryant legacy, very few people refer to C.R. 486 by his name.

— C.R. 581: Pleasant Grove Road for one part, Turner Camp Road for the other. Pleasant Grove Road is the perfect name for that beautiful stretch, and there’s an elementary school with the same name. Still, it’s basically known as 581. Not the north end – that’s Turner Camp Road. Got it?

— C.R. 48: Bushnell Road/Orange Avenue. This one’s a no-brainer. It’s Orange Avenue and only Orange Avenue in Floral City. Outside of Floral City, I’m guessing either 48 or Bushnell Road will work.

— C.R. 480: Stage Coach Trail/Oak Park Boulevard. A favorite drive from early on. This road will always be Stage Coach to me. I begrudgingly call it by its correct name, Oak Park Boulevard, for the stretch through Sugarmill Woods. But I find most people outside of Floral City know it as 480. So there you go.

— C.R. 482: Cardinal Street. Did you know Cardinal had a number? I didn’t until a year or two ago. Definitely a name street, especially with a parkway exit.

— C.R. 495: Citrus Avenue. This could go either way, but I notice some folks who live north of Crystal River in neighborhoods along C.R. 495 refer to the road as "Citrus Ave" instead of Citrus Avenue. Must be a Citrus Ave thing.

— C.R. 44: Fort Island Trail. Unlike the other 44, this one is known by its name.

— C.R. 494: Ozello Trail. This winding road, a favorite ride among many, definitely does not go by the number.

Happy trails.

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