St. Marys Bridge will shut down next week for routine repairs

Routine repairs will require a daytime shutdown of U.S. 17 at the St. Marys Bridge at the Florida-Georgia border next week.

That means a detour to Interstate 95 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.

The picturesque blue bridge over the St. Mary’s River was built in 1927. Its center span is designed to twist to open for passing boats on the St. Marys River below. But the span is not motorized — it requires a crew to unlock the turntable, turn it manually, then relock it after the boat goes by.

This week’s detour means southbound drivers who need to access U.S. 17 in Georgia, and communities like St. Marys and Kingsland, can use the St. Mary’s Road/Scrubby Bluff Road exit. Those needing to get to the Yulee area in Florida need to exit I-95 at the U.S. 17 exit just south of the state line.

The bridge was shut down briefly in April when crews tested the system that pivots it open to allow taller boats to cruise through. The span also was shut down for more than a year in 2014 for a full repainting.

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