MATLACHA, Fla. — The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted Tuesday to ask the Florida Department of Transportation to incorporate a full replacement of the Little Pine Island Bridge as a part of the permanent repairs to Pine Island Road through Matlacha.
Commissioners say this will speed up the bridge construction and make it more resilient to future storms.
The bridge was damaged so bad it had to undergo temporary repairs after the hurricane.
Construction would take about 8 months starting after Easter in April 2024. Prior to that, intermittent necessary work that will increase resiliency will happen in the vicinity of the bridge from late spring through fall. Motorists may experience temporary one-lane traffic.
The total cost of replacing the bridge costs over $7.6 million dollars.
About $3.4 million of that price tag would be covered by the Federal Highway Administration.
Plus the Florida Department of Transportation is still working to see if a share of the cost will be covered by Federal Emergency Relief Funding.
The Matlacha Bridge will not be impacted by the work.
FDOT has a Little Pine Island Bridge project hotline at 239-214-3364. E-mail inquiries can be sent to PineIslandInfo@qcausa.com and project information is available at www.swflroads.com.
In addition to the Little Pine Island Bridge-area work, FDOT crews currently are working on the east side of Matlacha on the segment of Pine Island Road that Ian washed out.
