Motorists traveling through Islamorada near Snake Creek Bridge were stopped for roughly an hour on Oct. 31 following a gate malfunction.
Road crews were called to the Florida Keys’ only bascule bridge around 2 p.m. following reports that the gates, which come down every hour to allow the bridge to open for larger vessels, weren’t working properly. As a result, stopped traffic extended from Mile Marker 82 to Mile Marker 91. Heavy traffic remained once the gates were fixed.
Vehicles were backed up on both sides of the bridge the following day on Nov. 1. What was initially reported as a malfunction was actually crews conducting maintenance, according to FDOT.
“According to our maintenance team there was no malfunction. The team took advantage of a scheduled opening to perform some maintenance and the opening lasted a little longer than usual,” said Tish Burgher, FDOT communications manager.
Issues surrounding Snake Creek Bridge aren’t new to motorists in Islamorada. Last February, a similar instance occurred as the barriers were stuck in a down position for more than an hour. In September 2021, the bridge was stuck in an upright position after a vessel struck a powerline nearby.
The bridge experienced several issues in 2020 —including two incidents just 12 days apart in June that kept vehicles idle for 20 minutes and one hour.
Snake Creek bridge saw repairs to its electric and structural components in July 2019, as well as cleaning and painting of bridge steel structures. In May 2020, the Florida Department of Transportation announced that work was complete on the bridge — with costs to repair and rehab it amounting to $1.6 million.
Built in 1981, Snake Creek Bridge at Mile Marker 86 is the only remaining drawbridge operating in the Keys. In the late 2000s, the drawbridge over Jewfish Creek in Key Largo was replaced by a beam bridge. In Marathon, the Boot Key Harbor drawbridge was closed and abandoned in 2009.
Florida Department of Transportation officials are looking into converting Snake Creek Bridge to a high-level fixed bridge to keep traffic moving. A study on the replacement continues, according to FDOT. The project kicked off in 2017. Residents had the chance to review and comment on four options during a May 2019 public meeting at Founders Park Community Center.
A project development and environmental study is the next step, according to FDOT. That study is in FDOT’s five-year work program for fiscal year 2026. The estimated cost for the study is $2 million. The project development and environmental study is expected to take roughly two years to complete.
