Bridge of Lions | |
|---|---|
 View of the original bridge from Castillo de San Marcos in 2003. | |
| Coordinates | 29°53′35″N 81°18′29″W / 29.893°N 81.308°W |
| Carries | 2 general purpose lanes of  SR A1A and 2 sidewalks |
| Crosses | Matanzas River (Intracoastal Waterway) |
| Locale | St. Augustine, Florida |
| Official name | Bridge of Lions |
| Maintained by | Florida Department of Transportation |
| ID number | 780074 |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | steel bascule bridge |
| Total length | 1,545 feet (471 m) |
| Width | 34 feet (10 m) |
| Longest span | 87 feet (27 m) |
| Clearance above | N/A |
| Clearance below | 25 feet (7.6 m) closed |
| History | |
| Opened | February 26, 1927 (original bridge) March 17, 2010 (current bridge) |
Bridge of Lions | |
   | |
| Location | St. Augustine, Florida  United States |
| Coordinates | 29°53′33″N 81°18′27″W / 29.89250°N 81.30750°W |
| Built | 1927 |
| Architect | J. E. Greiner Company |
| NRHP reference No. | 82001040 |
| Added to NRHP | 19 November 1982[1] |
The Bridge of Lions is a double-leaf bascule bridge that spans the Intracoastal Waterway in St. Augustine, Florida, United States. A part of State Road A1A, it connects downtown St. Augustine to Anastasia Island across Matanzas Bay. A pair of copies of the marble Medici lions guard the bridge, begun in 1925 and completed in 1927. They were removed in February 2005 and returned in March 2011.
Roads & Bridges magazine named the Bridge of Lions as fourth in the nation's top 10 bridges for 2010. Projects were evaluated based on size, community impact and challenges resolved.[2]
The United States Department of Transportation declared the bridge "structurally deficient and functionally obsolete" in 1999, prompting heated debates on what to do with the structure. A restoration plan was approved, but opponents continued to voice their opposition. Reynolds, Smith & Hills from nearby Jacksonville was awarded the engineering and design contract, estimated at $77 million, and projected to require five years to complete.[2]