For the first time since September, the Pensacola Bay Bridge has reopened all four lanes of traffic. The bridge was open for the first time on Thursday, restoring the connection between Gulf Breeze and Pensacola after the bridge went through nine months of repair.
During Hurricane Sally, the bridge was severely damaged when multiple Skanska barges broke loose and collided with the structure, according to the Pensacola News Journal.
According to the Florida Department of Transportation, two lanes of westbound traffic were first opened early Thursday morning, followed by the remaining two lanes of eastbound traffic later in the day.
Throughout the Pensacola Bay Bridge closure, the Garcon Point Bridge tolls were closed, but now they have been reinstated. They were initially expected to remain suspended until July 6.
The bridge was partially reopened just before Memorial Day weekend. However, the roadway was still a construction zone as Skanska crews were on-site continuing to repair the bridge. The company had been doing nightly lane closures for the past week to speed up the timeline of the full reopening to four lanes.
FDOT had been withholding payments of $35,000 per day since Hurricane Sally from Skanska until they provided four lanes of traffic on the bridge, which they now have.
Skanska still plans to have workers on site, even with traffic being restored, to complete a second span of the bridge, scheduled for completion in 2022.