The southbound span recently opened to two way traffic.
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Late in the summer of 1848, Levique and Silva sailed to New Orleans to sell a cargo of Green Turtle. Sailing home after bacchanal celebration in the Big Easy, they encountered a horrific storm, and decided to wait it out in a "hurricane hole" in some sheltered area along the coast. The hurricane had knocked down trees, rearranging the shoreline, and obliterated former landmarks.
John Levique searched for an entrance into Boca Ciega Bay. He was probably looking for Blind Pass, or even Pass-a-Grille, but instead he found a more northerly opening where there had not been one previously. Levach awakened a bleary-eyed Silva, and together they navigated through the new pass on the morning of September 27, 1848. Since that time, so the legend goes, the inlet between Treasure Island and Madeira Beach has been called "John's Pass" in honor of it's discovery, and maiden passage by John Levique.
John's Pass has shifted south, some speculate as much as 5,000 feet, since its formation during the Great Gale of 1848. As Madeira Beach has enjoyed land building to its south, the north end of Treasure Island seems to be eroding. Barrier islands are naturally dynamic; the waves and wind constantly shifting the sand, eroding one shoreline and building on another.
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The John's Pass Bridge, linking Treasure Island to Madeira Beach, is a Florida Department of Transportation project. The bridge is not maintained or administered by the City of Treasure Island. The John's Pass Bridge Information Line is 727-343-3100.
John's Pass Bridge construction
When complete in 2011, the new John's Pass bridges will be wider, have nice sidewalks, broad shoulders, firm abdominables, strong legs, a new bridge tender house, four observation decks and a wider navigational channel. Until then, here's some useful contacts: The John's Pass Bridge Hotline: (727) 343-3100. E-mail: Johnspass@qca-inc.com Or visit: www.dot.state.fl.us
John's Pass Bridge
Replacement Project
Projected completion date: Early 2011
Projected cost: $76.6 million
Contractor: Flatiron Constructors, Inc.
The proposed improvements involve replacing the existing bascule bridges with low-level, twin-span bascule bridges on the same alignment. The new bridges will increase the horizontal navigational clearance from 60 feet to 100 feet in width and will provide a 27-foot vertical clearance over the channel without acquiring additional right-of-way. The profile grade will be 5.6 percent and will meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The typical section includes two lanes of travel in each direction, 8-foot sidewalks, 10-foot outside shoulders, and 4-foot inside shoulders.
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