During our recent trip to Key West we visited the Bahia Honda Rail Bridge, a disused bridge in the lower Florida Keys connecting Bahia Honda Key with Spanish Harbor Key. Originally part of the Overseas Railway, the State of Florida purchased it after a 1935 hurricane and converted it to provide automobile use as part of the Overseas Highway in 1938. After a replacement Bahia Honda Bridge was opened in 1972, two spans of the bridge were removed to accommodate boat traffic and make the majority of the bridge inaccessible to pedestrian traffic, but the rest remain standing.
It was originally built by railway tycoon Henry Flagler as part of the Overseas Railroad which was completed in 1912. Flagler funded the construction of the bridge, along with the rest of the railway himself. It was purchased by the state of Florida and converted for highway use in 1938. Rather than completely rebuilding the bridge, the existing structure was repaired and the deck for the Overseas Highway was added on top, as the existing deck inside the truss was too narrow for vehicular traffic. The bridge served as the primary mode of transportation to the islands of the lower Keys, and as a primary evacuation route. It was known as the Seven Mile Bridge.
A new four-lane Seven Mile Bridge was built in 1972, a few hundred yards north of the old bridge, replacing the old route of US 1. Today, the former bridge provides a scenic overview of the area for tourists. Two of the truss spans have been removed o facilitate boat traffic, as the new bridge has an increased span height. The original bridge has fallen into a state of disrepair and signs have been posted on the bridge warning boat traffic to watch for falling debris, but all of the sections have remained standing (not counting the two that were removed). The easternmost section remains open to pedestrian traffic and is maintained by Bahia Honda State Park.
In 2011, a nonprofit community group called "Friends of Old Seven" was formed to try to rescue the bridge from further deterioration.
Called Friends of Old Seven the group is working with Monroe County, the city of Marathon and the bridge owners (the Florida Department of Transportation) to come up with a bold but practical renovation plan - and the $16 to $20 million needed to fund it. All sides agree it is in everybody's longterm interest to save the bridge - which is a major tourist attraction to the Middle Keys but has been "a bridge to nowhere" since the new Seven Mile Bridge was complete.
Photos copyright 2013 by Dan Cirucci.
No comments:
Post a Comment