Bridge of Lions

Infobox Bridge
bridge_name=Bridge of Lions
official_name=Bridge of Lions

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locale=St. Augustine, Florida
carries=2 general purpose lanes and 2 sidewalks
crosses=Matanzas River (Intracoastal Waterway)
id=780074|maint=Florida Department of Transportation
open=1927
below=7.6 meters (25 feet) closed
design=steel bascule bridge
mainspan=26.5 meters (87 feet)
length=470.9 meters (1545 feet)
width=10.3 meters (34 feet)
clearance=N/A
lat=29.893
long=-81.308The Bridge of Lions is a bascule bridge that spans the Intracoastal Waterway in St. Augustine, Florida. It leads to Anastasia Island. Lions made of marble used to guard the bridge, built in 1926 and 1927 across Matanzas Bay. The lions were removed in February 2005, and are expected to return about five years from that date.The Department of Transportation declared the bridge "structurally deficient and functionally obsolete" in 1999, prompting heated debates on what to do with the structure. A restoration plan was approved, but opponents continued to voice their opposition.

A new "temporary" bridge has been constructed adjacent to the original "Bridge of Lions", and as of May 18, 2006, traffic started using this temporary bridge while the original bridge is being rehabilitated and reconstructed to look like its predecessor. [http://www.staugustine.com/bridge] After nearly 80 years of service, an official closing ceremony for the original Bridge of Lions was held on May 26, 2006.

Several components of the original bridge are either being rehabilitated or returned (as lost components) to the rehabilitated bridge. Primarily, the exterior or fascia steel girders are being rehabiliated along with the bascule tower piers. Once the rehabiliation of the original bridge is completed, at a total project cost of 77 million dollars, the temporary bridge will be removed and used as part of an artificial reef just offshore.Fact|date=February 2007

References

*"Florida", DK Eyewitness Travel Guides, 2004, pg. 197
*staugustine.com - [http://www.staugustine.com/bridge/]

FDOT, Bridge of Lions Rehab Project - [http://www.fdotbridgeoflions.com/ http://www.fdotbridgeoflions.com/]