Another day, another hope from the island mayors that the U. S. Coast Guard will reduce the opening schedules for Anna Maria Island’s two key bridges.
Officials of the barrier island cities gathered April 20 at Holmes Beach City Hall, 5801 Marina Drive, for a Coalition of Barrier Island Elected Officials meeting. Joining the island mayors were Bradenton Beach Commissioner Jan Vosburgh, Holmes Beach Commissioner Jean Peelen, Anna Maria Commissioner Carol Carter and Manatee County Commissioner John Chappie. Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy, Bradenton Beach Mayor Bill Shearon and Holmes Beach Mayor Bob Johnson attended, while Mayor Jack Duncan of Longboat Key was absent.
One of the items up for discussion was a letter drafted by Duncan and sent in late March to David Hutchinson, executive director of the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization. In the letter, the four mayors suggest the MPO enact short-term changes that would potentially alleviate some congestion during peak traffic times.
The mayors’ “quick fixes” include adding more express bus routes from the mainland to the beaches, allowing a manual override of traffic signals for law enforcement to control the flow of traffic and reducing the amount of times drawbridges open to facilitate the flow of vehicular traffic.
The mayors’ suggestion was to limit openings for the Cortez and Anna Maria bridges to once an hour during peak traffic times.
Shearon suggested the two bridges open once every hour, but stagger the opening times to allow a boater to traverse both bridges within an hour.
“Open the Cortez Bridge on the hour and the Anna Maria Island Bridge on the half-hour,” he suggested.
Johnson said the main goal of the request is to have a conversation with the Coast Guard about the potential for changing the bridge opening schedules.
Johnson said he prefers a flexible opening schedule that can be adjusted to meet the needs of people traveling by land and by sea.
The Anna Maria and Cortez bridges presently open on signal from boaters Jan. 15-May 15 on the hour and half hour from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. The bridge opens May 16-Jan. 14 on signal on the hour and 20 and 40 minutes after the hour 6 a.m.-7 p.m. It opens on signal from a boater 7 p.m.-6 a.m.
The Longboat Pass Bridge opens on demand.
Despite the BIEO having not received a response from Hutchinson, Johnson said he felt confident the discussion regarding amending the opening schedules for the two bridges that link Anna Maria Island to the mainland is moving forward.
“It seems to be in the right hands now,” he said.
Hutchinson is spearheading talks with the Coast Guard. However, he is working from a July 2015 suggestion from the Island Transportation Planning Organization to limit the bridges to 30-minute openings year-round, as well as further restrictions during peak traffic season and holidays.
The suggestion was adopted as a resolution by the MPO June 22, 2015, before being submitted to the Coast Guard for consideration. According to Hutchinson, the Coast Guard may take up to another year in its consideration.
The ITPO is a group charted under the MPO to address transportation issues and agenda items of the MPO board meetings as they relate to Anna Maria Island. One representative from the island, currently Johnson, serves as a voting member of the MPO.
The BIEO is a coalition of local officials from Bradenton Beach, Holmes Beach, Anna Maria and Longboat Key to discuss ongoing projects and issues within their cities and provide suggestions on how the cities can work together to meet common goals. They hold no voting powers.
The BIEO will next meet at 2 p.m. Wednesday, May 18, at Longboat Key Town Hall, 501 Bay Isles Road.