When Will The Molino Road Bridge Reopen?

May 17, 2017

When will the Molino Road bridge reopen? That was the hot question at a community town hall meeting Tuesday night with District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry.

“It’s been about three and a half weeks with any visible work on it,” local resident Bonnie Exner said. “The frustration is the lack of activity.”

The project, Escambia County  Public Works Director Wes Moreno said, is funded by the Florida Department of Transportation and is outside direct county control.  He said the contractor has until September to complete the bridge replacement under their contract with FDOT.

Numerous residents at the public meeting expressed their displeasure with the lack of signage on Molino Road near Highway 29 warning of the road closure.

“That’s something we can and will take care of,” Barry said, adding that the county will approach FDOT and the contractor for additional signs like a variable message board. If not, he said, the county will place their own message board warning of the closure.

The replacement of the Molino Road bridge over Penasula Creek, just east of Sunshine Hill Road, started in early January.

The project is expected to be completed in approximately 265 calendar days.

The old wood piling supported bridge was constructed in 1958 had reached a level of deterioration to warrant replacement and was next on the list of the FDOT’s Five-Year Work Plan. The project is being funded and the construction work will be performed under contract for the Florida Department of Transportation. After completion of the structure, Escambia County will be responsible for the maintenance of the bridge.

Pictured: Construction on the Molino Road bridge over over Penasula Creek as seen late Tuesday afternoon. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.

Comments

14 Responses to “When Will The Molino Road Bridge Reopen?”

  1. fisherman on May 20th, 2017 7:42 am

    @Chris
    The point of my post was to let you know when you chase someone down in your vehicle they may see you as a threat and won’t give you a chance to explain. I would hate to see you killed before you had a chance to explain. All I ask is that you be careful and please don’t put yourself in a bad situation.

  2. Frankie Lewis on May 19th, 2017 7:50 am

    if you notice in the picture there is no work being done which is the case most of the time when I go that way and that is why it takes so long.

  3. Mary on May 19th, 2017 7:26 am

    I live on Sunshine Hill also & I am a “hidden driveway..next to a newer road…Tem. speed bumps? NO! Permanent speed bumps!! the also need to repave the old portion of the road..all the logging trucks & other bigger trucks are just tearing it up more…OH..i have never seen anyone working..”actually working” there

  4. Burnie Silcox on May 18th, 2017 5:01 pm

    I live onSunshine Hill Rd. It is a narrow Rd. with 3–4 hidden driveways.Speed Limit is 35 mph This means about 50 mph average.There are kids & dogs & a few walkers.They take their life in their hands.Could we have Temp. speed bumps? I know they have a rubber bolt down type. Just till they finish bridge.Or Policeman with speeder spikes ? Big logging trucks & 10-15 dunp trucks a day.People are angry about bridge-out, so they speed to get where they are going.Limited sight curve & hill. Please slow down.Almost as bad on Crabtree Church Rd.

  5. Chris in Molino on May 18th, 2017 8:34 am

    @fisherman—- We’re not just talking about a speeding vehicle, we’re talking about a speeding vehicle who almost hit my wife trying to turn into our driveway. A vehicle who didn’t even brake, just let off the gas, then floors it like they were mad they had to let off the gas to start with. Once, a woman hit a neighbor’s dog right in front of the kids, put on her brakes like she was gonna stop but kept going. Run her down too, got tag # and paid for address and surveiled her place to see if she had a dog. That’s all I’ll say. But stupid, maybe, but well prepared for whatever.

  6. fisherman on May 18th, 2017 8:11 am

    @Chris
    (more than once I’ve gotten in my truck, ran em down, and made sure we had an understanding.)
    You sir are one lucky individual to run down speeders and have an understanding with them. Stick your head in and get it blown off. When you chase down another driver you put your life in danger of being killed over a speeding vehicle. Stupid!!!!!

  7. Elizabeth M. Duncan on May 17th, 2017 1:07 pm

    Thank you so much, North Escambia, for this article.. I do not think that people this far out matter much to those in charge. Or, so it seems. Wish they would let people know what is going on. It’s nice to know why sometimes.

  8. Jerry on May 17th, 2017 12:32 pm

    Yet, how many years are they going to take to replace the Bay Bridge to Gulf Breeze?

  9. Chris in Molino on May 17th, 2017 8:21 am

    Ha ha ha, I absolutely LOVE IT ! I live just east of the bridge and am very thankful all of the racecar drivers from little cars to log trucks aren’t flying by my home anymore. For the very few “normal” drivers out there, I’m sorry for your inconvenience. More than once my wife has almost been hit trying to turn into the driveway by racecar wannabes flying over the hill, and more than once I’ve gotten in my truck, ran em down, and made sure we had an understanding. Fortunately for me I’ve never had the law involved. Then again, I never call the law to handle MY business so I guess karma worked for me.
    At any rate, what are residents complaining about more signage for ? If your a resident and know the bridge is being worked on, you shouldn’t need signs. Maybe it’s just the Yankee yuppie folks who have nothing better to do than try to make “progress” for those of us that don’t want it.

  10. Honest John on May 17th, 2017 7:50 am

    I talked to a friend who builds bridges and he said he didn’t know why it would take that long to rebuild that bridge. He even went to the site.

  11. Molino Girl on May 17th, 2017 7:32 am

    After doing some research I discovered that it took less than 6 months to rebuild the 3400 feet of the I-10 bridge over Escambia Bay destroyed by hurricane Ivan. That was a pretty massive undertaking. Why would it take longer than that to build a tiny little 2 lane bridge and why do we put up with it? Why are there not clauses put into the contract that no construction will begin until all materials are available in a local location and all studies and permits are obtained and that construction will begin and be continuous until work is completed? Why is that so hard? Just looking for a good explanation

  12. GMH on May 17th, 2017 6:58 am

    Perhaps this has already been asked, but why did DOT not build a temporary bridge like they have done in most other instances. 4 other bridges were or are being done that way now, some on much less traveled roads than this one.

  13. Les Bridges on May 17th, 2017 5:36 am

    I wonder how many days and how much $ it took to construct the old bridge? I’m going out on a limb here and say probably a fraction of what this modern marvel will. Looks like they are re-routing the inter-coastal waterway.

    Maybe this one will last longer, hate to see them coming back every 60 years or so to replace it, that is getting old.

    Have a nice day,

    Les

  14. Straight Shooter on May 17th, 2017 5:28 am

    Amazing they have this long to build one little bridge.

    After Hurricane Ivan the I-10 bridge over Escambia bay was built in less than a year.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News