FEC and US-1 Bridges over Loxahatchee River in Jupiter, FL

FEC: (Bridge Hunter; no Historic Bridges; Satellite)

US-1: (Bridge Hunter; no Historic Bridges; Satellite)

Both of these bridges are under construction. The movable span of the FEC bridge is being replaced as part of a project to add back the second track for Brightline service. [the following Roaming Railfan post] A 20-month project will replace the US-1 bridge. Traffic will be detoured to the A1A bridge during that construction. [FDOT]

Brightline via PalmBeachPost
Construction began on July 22, 2021.
The community chipped in $1.6m of the $34m cost so that the vertical clearance of one of the spans can be improved from 4' to 8'. "Brightline has estimated the increase will allow 70 to 80% of boats to pass through when the drawbridge is down."

The Roaming Railfan posted five photos with the comment: "This past weekend saw the start of the process to replace the bascule segment on the Loxahatchee River Drawbridge (Jupiter Drawbridge). Over the course of the next 2 months, the bascule segment and all of the associated electrical and mechanical components used to operate it will be replaced as the overall bridge is upgraded for double track for Brightline. A temporary yellow span will be lifted out of the bridge by a crane twice a day during this process to continue to allow boats to pass. Look for the video coming out soon but in the meantime here are some photos."

Austin Strenecky shared

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While looking at a satellite map, I noticed that the adjacent road bridge, US-A1A, didn't have a movable span. Some of the above photos confirm that the A1A bridge has a higher clearance. Note that all three towboats in the first photo have retractable pilothouses. In that photo we can also see some cranes on barges that they have brought in for the US-1 construction. The following photo shows that the old bridge had room for a second track, but the new piers in the above photos show that they chose to completely rebuild the bridge. It looks like the spacing for the tracks will be larger on the new bridge. I picked a view by C Hanchey that also shows the clearance of the A1A bridge.

Mar 2012 photo by C Hanchey via BridgeHunter, cropped

tequesta
As of Apr 2022, the bridge is expected to be completed in 2026 and cost $122m. "The new bridge will have up to 42 feet of vertical clearance, and the navigable-channel width will be increased to 125 feet." Unlike the A1A bridge, this bridge sees commercial traffic in addition to pleasure boats because the Intracoastal Waterway uses this part of the river. So it will still have bascule spans.
[The movable span is 267' wide. The width of the 1958 bridge was 116'. [H&H] (H&H must be measuring the width as the total movable length because all other sources are consistent about the navigation channel being 125' between fenders.]

They are using two diamond-impregnated wires to cut off the top of the counterweights.

1:00 video @ 0:59

WPTV reports the cost of the new road bridge as $133m. 

Renderings via tequesta

The new bridge will have a concrete deck to reduce noise. The improved clearance "is anticipated to decrease bridge openings for marine traffic by approximately 44 percent." [facts] A satellite image confirms that the old bridge had a metal grate deck.

Satellite

Presentation via tequesta, p14

The approach spans are much wider so most of the pleasure boats don't even need to use the navigation channel.

Presentation via tequesta, p13

The current bridge has four leaves that are offset because the road crosses the river on a slight angle. The boat that is approaching the bridge looks like a boat for which the new bridge may not have to open.

Presentation via tequesta, p13 at 100%

The results of my first Google search were dominated by an accident instead of the bridge replacement. Specifically, a pontoon bridge was crushed when the bridge was raised. My first reaction is that I can see how a drawbridge can crush a boat when going down, but how does it crush a boat when going up? The above photo shows us how, the boat was moored on the backside of the pier. Note that the backside of the spans go down as the main part of the spans go up like a teeter-totter.

thequalifiedcaptain/Instagram via wtsp
[This gives us a good view of the counterweights that allows the backside of the movable span to be shorter than the main part of the span.]

safe_image for Dec 20, 2022, YouTube Update
[A YouTube posted 8 months earlier    At 3:55, he covers the start of the replacement of the bascule span.]

safe_image for Brightline Construction: Jupiter Cutover and Loxahatchee River Drawbridge - Jan/Feb 2023
This Brightline construction update looks at the activation of another 6 miles of double track around Jupiter, FL and the now complete Loxahatchee River drawbridge in January and February 2023. With the completion of this cutover, the Florida East Coast Railway is now double-tracked from MiamiCentral Station to CP Seabranch south of Stuart. I also show FEC train 206 crossing the new bridge at the end.
[The bridge coverage starts at 2:28]

I wonder what the five cranes in the background are working on.

@ 6:10

0:38 video

Aug 2024:

0:58 video

Our team [Southland Holdings] in Jupiter, FL has been making major progress on the US 1 Bridge Replacement Project. The SR 5/US 1 Bridge over the Loxahatchee River/Intracoastal Waterway is being replaced with a twin double-leaf drawbridge with up to 42 feet of vertical clearance. Enhanced safety, reduced traffic noise, and improved traffic flow are all part of this project to better connect the community.