Transportation

The new Howard Frankland Bridge from Tampa to St. Petersburg is slated to open

WUSF | By Rick Mayer

Published March 19, 2025 at 1:40 PM EDT

The final work is wrapping up on the new span of the Howard Frankland Bridge in this March 2025 image. The bridge will carry motorists across Old Tampa Bay from Tampa to St. Petersburg beginning Tuesday, weather permitting.

After a decade of planning and four years of construction, the traffic switch will occur early Tuesday, weather permitting, on the $865 million, eight-lane span over Old Tampa Bay.

If you’re among the 250,000 daily drivers over the Howard Frankland Bridge, chances are you’ve been stuck in one of its notorious traffic snarls over the past four years watching a dream come true.

As of Tuesday, the dream is reality. A new $865 million span is scheduled to open, bringing much-needed relief to patient Interstate 275 motorists traveling between Tampa and St. Petersburg.

“The goal is to switch traffic Monday night into Tuesday, weather permitting, so motorists would be on the new bridge Tuesday morning,” Florida Department of Transportation spokesperson Kris Carson said.

Planners anticipate you’ll appreciate the view driving on the new Howard Frankland more than glancing over from the existing spans.

More than a decade in the making, the new bridge consists of eight lanes: Four general-use lanes will carry I-275 South (westbound) traffic from Tampa to St. Petersburg, and two toll express lanes will travel in each direction.

The existing I-275 South bridge, built in the 1990s, will be converted to take vehicles east, from St. Petersburg to Tampa (I-275 North).

The new bridge will also include a multiuse pedestrian-bike path and infrastructure to handle a rail system.

The remaining I-275 North bridge, which opened in 1960, will be removed sometime next year.

FDOT said the oldest span was a victim of saltwater corrosion requiring cost-prohibitive maintenance.

Improved concrete and metals were used in the new bridge that will make it harder for saltwater to infect the structure, allowing for an estimated 100-year lifespan, according to FDOT.

Toll prices have not been announced for the express lanes, but reported estimates ranged from 15 cents to $2 a mile.

FDOT said drivers can expect lane closures from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. each night this week ahead of the traffic switch.

The Howard Frankland carries the most traffic by far of the three spans across Old Tampa Bay. The state announced plans for the replacement in 2013, and construction began in 2020.