The Florida Department of Transportation is powering up a “hybrid” model.
The DOT will host a “hybrid” meeting to kick off its project development and environment study of alternatives for the Longboat Pass Bridge and its approaches on State Road 789 on Longboat Key and in Bradenton Beach.
The DOT had indicated in 2019 that it would tackle a PD&E for the 1957 drawbridge spanning Longboat Pass. PD&E studies for the Anna Maria Island and Cortez bridges built about the same time resulted in recommendations for high, fixed-span replacement structures.
The Longboat Pass Bridge study will evaluate the engineering and environmental impacts of alternatives, including rehabilitating the bridge and replacing the bridge.
“Each alternative will be evaluated to determine social, environmental impacts, safety needs, additional right of way and traffic performance,” read a project overview statement from the DOT.
The scope of the new PD&E is a distance of about three-fourths of a mile on State Road 789 from North Shore Road on Longboat Key to the Coquina Beach entrance in Bradenton Beach.
The kickoff meeting will be held online on the project website, www.swflroads.com/sr789/longboatkey, as well as in-person 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, March 23, at the Harbourside Ballroom, 3000 Harbourside Ballroom, Longboat Key.
Materials related to the project will be posted online beginning Tuesday, March 16, and the comment period will continue until Friday, April 2.
Ahead of the kickoff, the DOT planned to send notices to property owners located a minimum of 300 feet on either side of roadway within the project limits, as well as additional surrounding areas.
The PD&E is expected to cost $2,125,000, with completion set for August 2023.
A public meeting on alternatives is tentatively scheduled for early 2022.
The bridge underwent $5 million in repairs in 2019.
Get in touch
The project manager on the PD&E study is Patrick Batemen in Bartow. He can be reached at 863-519-2792 or patrick.batemen@dot.state.fl.us.
— Lisa Neff