Two bridge closures in a week delays traffic
By Nick Walter
Islander Reporter
Traffic on the Anna Maria Island Bridge was delayed twice in last week — once because of a traffic accident and another time because of a bridge malfunction. Cindy Clemmons, public information officer for Florida Department of Transportation District 1 office, said the first delay, on Nov. 5, was due to a vehicular accident in the west-bound lane. There was a brief traffic disruption. Homes Beach police re-routed traffic on the Island side of the bridge at the Manatee Avenue-East Bay Drive intersection.
The other incident, Nov. 10, occurred when the drawbridge malfunctioned as it retracted. At 11:20 a.m., one leaf was stuck at a 90-degree position for 70 minutes.
“We don’t see any problems in the near future with it,” Clemmons said. “This [malfunction] doesn’t happen often, but it does happen because that’s the nature of a bascular bridge.”
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