Pensacola beachgoers are one step closer to what officials promise will be decreased traffic on the Bob Sikes Bridge as construction crews begin to “fly the gantry up” Thursday for the new toll plaza.
In what District 4 Commissioner Ashlee Hofberger called “a milestone project for Pensacola Beach,” crews began installing the columns of the toll plaza June 18 with a plan to install the gantry around 1 a.m. June 19 if weather permits, according to Green-Simmons Company construction worker Tom Arnold.
“You’re gonna have a nice toll plaza here,” Arnold told the News Journal.
With the continuing work on the toll plaza, Arnold said they will suspend construction on the plaza at the end of June to allow the currently closed lanes onto the beach to be reopened for the increased July beach traffic and the Blue Angels Pensacola Beach Air Show.
“We’re suspending operations at the end of this month for the beach crowds so the Blues can fly, and we can have all the fun we can have on the beach, and there won’t be any lane closures,” Arnold said. “Hopefully that will make everybody happy.”
After Labor Day, the existing toll booth is scheduled for demolition, at which point the new toll plaza should begin operations.
The new toll plaza project, with a cost totaling $6,559,570, will offer enhanced safety features such as better emergency response vehicle access and substantially decreasing congestion on the bridge during peak beach times, which Hofberger said will provide a better beach experience for visitors and locals alike.
“We will see some additional upgrades once the gantry is in,” Hofberger told the News Journal. “We’re going to make sure the multi-use path is safe for runners and for bikers, there will be some landscaping that goes in for beautification purposes and, one of the more exciting things, we’ll be able to run (fiber optics) from the toll plaza to the red light to control traffic and provide a better traveling experience.”
Once the new fiber optics are connected to the traffic signal at Via de Luna Drive and Ft. Pickens Road, it will connect to an upcoming fiber network on U.S. Highway 98 in Gulf Breeze. Both will then be connected to Northwest Florida’s new $22.5 million Traffic Management Center, a traffic ‘nerve center’ that will help monitor and respond to congestion in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties in real time.
The project is set for conclusion in Summer 2026, barring any substantial weather delays.
Benjamin Johnson is the crime and military reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He covers local law enforcement and courts within Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: New Pensacola Beach toll plaza hits major milestone
Reporting by Benjamin Johnson, Pensacola News Journal / Pensacola News Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Benjamin Johnson, Pensacola News Journal | USA TODAY Network
