STUART, Fla. — Additional time has been added for rehabilitation work on the St. Lucie River Drawbridge in Stuart, Brightline and Florida East Coast Railway have announced.
While intermittent closures were scheduled to continue today (Wednesday, Aug. 30) and Thursday, Aug. 31, an additional extended full closure has now been added on Thursday from 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. to allow additional rail joint welding. Work today will see the bridge open for 10 minutes at the top of each hour from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.; after the conclusion of Thursday’s extended closure, 10-minute, top-of-the-hour closures set from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
As of Sept. 1, an additional early-morning closure has been announced for the morning of Sept. 4, between 12:01 a.m. and 3 a.m. for additional rail joint welding.
The additional time has been approved by the U.S. Coast Guard, which previously approved work that began Aug. 25 [see “Brightline, FEC set several days of work …,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 25, 2023].
For mariners, information on bridge closures can be obtained through the drawbridge by Brightline and FEC [see “Brightline, FEC introduce app …,” News Wire, Aug. 21, 2023]. Message boards at the bridge also provide countdown information on bridge openings and closings, and a bridge monitor is on site between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily.
— Updated Sept. 1 at 6:40 a.m. CDT with information on Sept. 4 closure.
In June Brightline announced that all construction was complete. What did it find that caused this work on the bridge. Also, another day of overnight closures announced on this news wire. Mayb FRA waiting for this problem to be fixed before giving operational approval??