Drivers crossing Brooks Bridge should expect nighttime traffic shifts and lane reductions on Highway 98 beginning tonight and continuing through Thursday, the Florida Department of Transportation announced.
- From 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. each night, westbound U.S. 98 will be reduced to a single lane and shifted onto the eastbound side of the highway, from Santa Rosa Boulevard on Okaloosa Island to west of Perry Avenue in Fort Walton Beach. Eastbound traffic will also be reduced to a single lane during the same hours.
The temporary configuration is necessary to perform construction activities on the new bridge, according to FDOT. Law enforcement officers will be on-site to direct motorists through the work zone.
Intermittent lane closures may also occur on U.S. 98 from Ferry Road to Pier Road between 9 p.m. and 5:30 a.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
The work is part of the $171 million Brooks Bridge Replacement Project, which calls for two new parallel bridges that will increase capacity to six travel lanes. The current four-lane bridge opened in 1966.
All activities are weather dependent and may be delayed or rescheduled due to inclement weather. FDOT reminds drivers to use caution when traveling through the work zone, particularly at night, and to watch for construction workers and equipment entering and exiting the roadway.
