ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Drivers may soon start noticing construction popping out of the St. Johns River as the new bridge structure for the Shands Bridge project begins to take shape.
Sara Pleasants, with the Florida Department of Transportation, talked about the ongoing developments and highlighted significant construction activities.
“We’re really starting to see activity ramp up on the water on the new Shands Bridge project,” Pleasants said.
The contractor is currently installing a temporary trestle on either side of the river in shallow water that is too shallow for barge work. Once they reach deeper water toward the center of the river, they will be able to use barges for construction.
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As drivers pass over the existing Shands Bridge in the coming months, they will notice the new bridge structure rising out of the water.
“The new bridge is going to have 65 feet of vertical clearance, compared to 45 feet on the existing Shands Bridge,” Pleasants explained.
This change will be very noticeable as the construction progresses over the next several years. The additional 20 feet of clearance will match the Buckman Bridge’s height, which is an improvement for marine commerce in the region.
The project is expected to follow a five-year timeline, with completion aimed for 2030.
“It’s a design-build project that started in late 2022,” Pleasants noted. The first year and a half focused primarily on design work, although some clearing and preliminary work has already been completed.
Pleasants mentioned that the project involves massive 60-inch concrete piles being manufactured at a facility near Savannah.
“They’re floating them down the river to the job site,” she said.
The first 30-inch piles arrived a couple of months ago, and video footage captured their arrival on the barge.
The piles must be driven deep into the soil to ensure stability.
“They really have to drive them deep so they’re in good, solid ground,” Pleasants said.
For those curious about the current state of the project, Pleasants described what visitors might see if they were to visit the site.
“You’d probably see the barges toward the center of the existing Shands Bridge,” she said. “You’d also see trestles on either side of the Clay and St. Johns sides, where they are working to drive the piles.”
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The visual appearance of the new bridge will differ from existing structures.
“It’ll actually look a lot like the Buckman Bridge,” Pleasants noted.
While concrete piles may look similar, the scale and placement of these piles in the water will create a distinct look.
The overall cost of the project is approximately $595 million.
The entire project spans about six and a half miles, with roughly two miles dedicated to the bridge itself. The design-build team for this segment includes WGI, Inc., Johnson Bros. Corporation, and American Bridge.
According to FDOT, some parts of the bridge will be demolished, while others will remain for sidewalks and fishing. FDOT has an agreement with St. Johns County and Clay County to maintain the kept sections.
For those seeking more detailed information about the project costs, Pleasants directed them to the First Coast Expressway website.
The website is also hosted on the NFL Roads platform, allowing users to search by county or roadway.
An interactive GIS map of the project can be viewed here.
