Snake Creek Bridge, Bascule bridge in Islamorada, United States.
Snake Creek Bridge is a bascule bridge connecting Plantation Key and Windley Key in the Florida Keys. It features a single-leaf mechanism that rotates upward to allow boats to navigate through the waterway below.
The current bridge is the fourth structure at this crossing. The first carried the Overseas Railroad in the early 1900s; a second, built in the 1920s alongside it, carried the first Overseas Highway. After the railroad was abandoned following the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, the highway was rerouted onto the former railroad right of way in the 1940s and a third bridge was built. The present drawbridge was completed in 1981.
The bridge crosses Snake Creek between Plantation Key and Windley Key near mile marker 86. Its drawbridge openings briefly stop Overseas Highway traffic, a recurring interruption that the Florida Department of Transportation studied in 2019 for a possible high-level fixed-span replacement.
The bridge opens regularly to allow boats to pass through, and boaters should communicate on VHF Channel 9 when requesting passage. Checking the opening schedule beforehand helps ensure you can plan your crossing appropriately.
The current drawbridge, completed in 1981, was the first at this site to open; all earlier spans were low-level fixed bridges. It gained its status as the Florida Keys' only operating drawbridge in 2008, after the original Jewfish Creek Bridge was replaced and the Boot Key Harbor Bridge in Marathon closed.
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