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Friendship TrailBridge History
Constructed in 1956, the old Gandy Bridge carried westbound traffic across Old Tampa Bay until 1995 when a new westbound bridge was opened. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) had plans to demolish the bridge when citizens from both Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties urged their local governments to save the bridge from demolition. In 1997, the counties assumed joint ownership and in December of 1999, the old bridge began its new life as the Friendship TrailBridge, becoming one of the longest pedestrian structures over water in the world. According to the Friendship Trail Corporation, more than 600,000 people annually use the Friendship TrailBridge for activities such as walking, jogging, bicycling, skating and fishing.
The bridge is 13,770’-6” (2.608 miles) long and has a width of 30’-7”. On the approach spans, the top of the roadway centerline is at elevation 11.5’.
The bridge is comprised of three different span arrangements. There are 252 low-level approach spans that are 48’-0” long, each consisting of four post-tensioned concrete beams. There are 20 high-level approach spans that are 72’-0” long that consist of six post-tensioned concrete beams each. The channel span configuration consists of four three-span continuous steel girders of 74’-0” - 86’-6” - 74’-0”. The minimum vertical clearance at the main channel is 43’-6” at mean high water.