The demolition of the old Pensacola Bay Bridge presents opportunities to reuse and recycle the concrete and steel components that have served the region since 1960. The old bridge included more than 47,000 cubic yards of concrete, all of which are being disposed of offshore for building fishing reefs.

Work to dispose of concrete debris from the old Pensacola Bay Bridge is underway. Crews are loading the debris aboard barges and transporting it offshore for disposal in areas managed by Escambia County’s Marine Resources Division. The reefs are sure to become favorites for fishing and diving in the Gulf of Mexico.

With all traffic shifted to the eventual eastbound bridge the focus of construction has turned to demolishing the former Pensacola Bay Bridge. To safely remove the concrete and steel components crews first drill cores into the bridge decks to attach the lifting apparatus so it can be attached to a crane. Once the leads are connected to the crane, the bridge deck is cut free using a concrete saw and lifted as a single piece onto a disposal barge.

U.S. 98 westbound traffic was transitioned to the new Pensacola Bay Bridge this morning (Sunday, Sept. 8) at approximately 5 a.m. CDT. Crews worked through the nighttime hours to transition two lanes of westbound traffic off the "old" Pensacola Bay Bridge and onto the new (eventual eastbound) structure.

The new (eventual eastbound) Pensacola Bay Bridge opened to traffic Wednesday evening, Sept. 4 at approximately 10 p.m. Eastbound (Pensacola to Gulf Breeze) traffic is now using the new bridge while westbound (Gulf Breeze to Pensacola) drivers remain temporarily on the “old” bridge until approximately Sunday evening Sept. 8.