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Belleair bridge closed; new span opens Friday

News Channel 8 photo by TODD DAVIS

The bridge is 80 percent complete. Work on approaches, boat ramps, and a park underneath the span will continue until November.

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TBO.com

Published: May 28, 2009

CLEARWATER - The Belleair Beach Causeway Bridge was scheduled to reopen to two-way traffic in time for the Friday morning commute, Pinellas County officials said.

They left open the possibility that weather might delay the schedule.

The temporary crossing closed to traffic at 7 p.m. Thursday so workers could prepare for the grand reopening, which is expected to bring a marked improvement in traffic flow.

In a news release, county officials outlined a traffic detour from the beaches to the mainland along Gulf Boulevard south to Walsingham Road/State Road 688, over the Intracoastal Waterway Bridge to Indian Rocks Road, then north on Indian Rocks Road to West Bay Drive.

The bridge is 80 percent complete. Work on approaches, boat ramps, and a park underneath the span will continue until November, but starting next month motorists will see a marked improvement in traffic flow when they start driving over the newly constructed high rise section.

The new bridges are being built for a 75-year service life and feature a sleek design with fewer concrete columns for extended water views.

Earlier this year county officials said the high rise span would open for traffic by the end of April but a combination of bad weather, missing parts and a construction mishap in February delayed the opening date.

More than 2,700 pounds of concrete chunks rained to the ground Feb. 6 while workers were tensioning a misaligned tendon, one of many that hold concrete bridge sections together like beads on a string.

Consultants have confirmed the bridge did not lose any structural integrity because of the mishap, and the repair process is under review by DOT managers in Tallahassee.

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