2,641 votes

Sunshine Skyway Bridge

11101 34th South Street, St. Petersburg, Florida 33711 USA

Independent

“Beautiful 21,877 feet bridge spanning Tampa Bay”

The Bob Graham Sunshine Skyway Bridge is a bridge spanning Tampa Bay, Florida, with a cable-stayedmain span, and a total length of 21,877 feet (4.1 miles or approximately 6.67 km). It is part of I-275 (SR 93) and US 19 (SR 55), connecting St. Petersburg in Pinellas County and Terra Ceia in Manatee County, Florida, passing through Hillsborough County waters. Construction of the current bridge began in 1982, and the completed bridge was dedicated on February 7, 1987. The new bridge cost $244 million to build, and was opened to traffic on April 20, 1987. It replaced an older bridge constructed in 1954 and partly destroyed in a collision in 1980. It is constructed of steel and concrete. Steel cables clad in 84 9-inch (229 mm) steel tubes (42 per pylon) along the center line of the bridge support the main span. It was designed by the Figg & Muller Engineering Group (who also designed the popular Seven Mile Bridge), and built by the American Bridge Company.

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Reviewed by
Gordon & Helen

2 Reviews
1 Helpful

April 28, 2015

Rated 4.0

Beautiful bridge drive....

1 person found this review helpful

Reviewed by
Jeremy

6 Reviews
0 Helpful

December 14, 2022

Rated 5.0

The Sunshine Skyway Bridge provides a beautiful and rather exhilarating path across the mouth of Tampa Bay.

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Reviewed by
76VeeDub

38 Reviews
16 Helpful

April 08, 2018

Rated 4.0

Scared of Bridges? Scared of roller coasters? Scared of crashing to your death into the sea? Well suck it up buttercup, because the Sunshine Skyway Bridge is a must drive! Yes it's steep, yes there's a toll ($1.25), but yes it's worth it to say you did it.

Make sure you also pay ($4 if you're fishing, or $1 and some strange amount of change if you tell them you'll be fast...) to drive out onto the fishing piers on either side. The South side pier is the longest fishing pier in the world, and also one of the best places to capture the sunset.

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