Sunshine Skyway Bridge Live Cam

The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge spanning Tampa Bay in Florida, United States. Here's a brief history of the bridge:

• The original Sunshine Skyway Bridge was a cantilever bridge that opened to traffic in 1954. It connected St. Petersburg and Terra Ceia and was a vital link in the U.S. Route 19 highway.
• In 1969, a collision between the SS Summit Venture and a pier of the bridge caused a section of the bridge to collapse, killing 35 people.
• In 1980, construction of a new bridge began. The new bridge was designed as a cable-stayed bridge, which is more resistant to high winds and was deemed safer than the original cantilever bridge.
• The new Sunshine Skyway Bridge opened to traffic in 1987. It is 4 miles long and has a vertical clearance of 193 feet, allowing large ships to pass under it.
• The bridge has won numerous awards for its design and construction, including the Presidential Design Award and the American Institute of Steel Construction's Most Beautiful Steel Bridge award.
• In 2005, the Florida Department of Transportation added a suicide prevention barrier to the bridge to prevent people from jumping off it.

Today, the Sunshine Skyway Bridge is an iconic landmark of the Tampa Bay area and is an important transportation link for the region.

The idea of a bridge across Tampa Bay dates back to the 1930s. At the time, the only way to cross the bay was by ferry, which was slow and unreliable. The Florida State Road Department (the precursor to the Florida Department of Transportation) began studying the feasibility of a bridge as early as 1932.

In the 1940s and 1950s, several proposals for a bridge were put forward. One proposal called for a low-level bridge that would have been less expensive but would have obstructed ship traffic. Another proposal called for a high-level bridge, similar to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, but it was deemed too expensive.

In 1950, the State Road Department approved a plan for a cantilever bridge that would connect St. Petersburg and Terra Ceia. The bridge was designed by Figg & Muller Engineers, Inc. and was built by the American Bridge Company.

Construction of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge began in 1952 and was completed in 1954. The bridge was 5.5 miles long and had a vertical clearance of 155 feet, which allowed ships to pass underneath it. The bridge cost $26 million to build and was financed by tolls.

However, the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge had some design flaws that made it vulnerable to accidents. The bridge was narrow and had only two lanes in each direction, which caused traffic congestion. In addition, the bridge had a sharp turn at the southern end, which made it difficult for drivers to navigate.

After the collapse of the original bridge in 1980, a new bridge was proposed and designed as a cable-stayed bridge, which is more resistant to high winds and has a wider deck with four lanes in each direction. The new bridge was completed in 1987 and has become an iconic landmark of the Tampa Bay area.

The original Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which opened to traffic in 1954, was a cantilever bridge that connected St. Petersburg and Terra Ceia in Florida, United States. Here's some information about its construction:

• The bridge was designed by the engineering firm Figg & Muller Engineers, Inc., and was built by the American Bridge Company.
• The construction of the bridge took two years, from 1952 to 1954, and cost $26 million (equivalent to $251 million in 2022).
• The bridge was 5.5 miles long and had a vertical clearance of 155 feet, which allowed ships to pass underneath it.
• The bridge was constructed using a cantilever design, which is a type of bridge that uses two arms to support the deck. The arms were anchored on opposite sides of the bridge and extended out over the water until they met in the middle, where they were connected to a central span.
• The central span of the bridge was made of steel and was 425 feet long. It was supported by two towers that were 140 feet tall.
• The deck of the bridge was made of steel and concrete and was supported by trusses that were attached to the arms of the bridge.
• The bridge had two lanes in each direction and was financed by tolls.

While the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge was an engineering marvel of its time, it had some design flaws that made it vulnerable to accidents, as evidenced by the tragic collapse of a portion of the bridge in 1980. This led to the construction of a new, safer bridge, which was completed in 1987.

The second span of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which opened in 1987, was built to replace the original bridge that collapsed in 1980. Here's some information about the construction of the second span:

• The new bridge was designed as a cable-stayed bridge, which is a type of bridge that uses cables to support the deck instead of trusses. This design was chosen because it is more resistant to high winds and provides a wider deck with four lanes in each direction.
• The construction of the new bridge began in 1982 and took five years to complete. The bridge was built by a joint venture of several companies, including Figg & Muller Engineers, Inc. and the American Bridge Company.
• The new bridge is 4 miles long and has a vertical clearance of 193 feet, which allows large ships to pass underneath it.
• The bridge has a main span that is 1,200 feet long and is supported by two diamond-shaped towers that are 430 feet tall.
• The deck of the bridge is made of steel and concrete and is supported by 42 cables that are attached to the towers.
• The bridge was designed to withstand winds of up to 150 miles per hour and was built with advanced engineering techniques to make it resistant to corrosion and other environmental factors.
• The new bridge cost $244 million to build (equivalent to $556 million in 2022) and was financed by tolls.

Today, the Sunshine Skyway Bridge is an iconic landmark of the Tampa Bay area and an important transportation link for the region.

The 1980 Sunshine Skyway Bridge collapse was a tragic event in which a section of the original bridge, measuring 1,200 feet long, was struck by a freighter during a severe thunderstorm, causing it to collapse and sending 35 people to their deaths. Here's some information about the collapse:

• On May 9, 1980, the freighter Summit Venture, which was carrying a cargo of phosphate, collided with the bridge during a severe thunderstorm. The collision occurred when the ship's radar malfunctioned and the ship's captain lost sight of the bridge in the storm.
• The collision caused a 1,200-foot section of the bridge to collapse, including a number of vehicles that were on the bridge at the time. A total of 35 people died in the collapse, including several who were in their cars and several who were on a Greyhound bus that fell off the bridge and into the water.
• In the aftermath of the collapse, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) conducted an investigation and determined that the cause of the accident was the failure of both the ship's crew and the bridge's authorities to take appropriate action to avoid the collision.
• The collapse of the bridge led to the construction of a new, safer bridge that was designed to be more resistant to accidents and environmental factors.
• Today, a memorial park located at the south end of the bridge serves as a tribute to the victims of the collapse and a reminder of the importance of safety in engineering and transportation.

The replacement Sunshine Skyway Bridge was designed and constructed in the aftermath of the 1980 collapse of the original bridge. Here's some information about the replacement bridge:

• The new bridge was designed as a cable-stayed bridge, which is a type of bridge that uses cables to support the deck instead of trusses. This design was chosen because it is more resistant to high winds and provides a wider deck with four lanes in each direction.
• Construction of the new bridge began in 1982 and took five years to complete. The bridge was built by a joint venture of several companies, including Figg & Muller Engineers, Inc. and the American Bridge Company.
• The bridge is 4 miles long and has a vertical clearance of 193 feet, which allows large ships to pass underneath it.
• The bridge has a main span that is 1,200 feet long and is supported by two diamond-shaped towers that are 430 feet tall.
• The deck of the bridge is made of steel and concrete and is supported by 42 cables that are attached to the towers.
• The bridge was designed to withstand winds of up to 150 miles per hour and was built with advanced engineering techniques to make it resistant to corrosion and other environmental factors.
• The bridge cost $244 million to build (equivalent to $556 million in 2022) and was financed by tolls.
• The new bridge was opened to traffic on April 30, 1987, and has since become an iconic landmark of the Tampa Bay area and an important transportation link for the region.

The replacement Sunshine Skyway Bridge is considered one of the safest and most beautiful bridges in the world and is a testament to the resilience and innovation of the engineering and construction industries.