New Maydell Drive Bridge Opens With Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony

TAMPA, FL —Hillsborough County celebrated the opening of the new Maydell Drive Bridge on Friday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Hillsborough County replaced the old bridge over the Bypass Canal, built in 1968 and closed in 2015 when engineers determined it to be structurally insufficient. Since then, drivers have been using 78th Street and U.S. 41/50th Street as detours.

It's now been replaced with a wider bridge with two lanes of traffic, wider shoulders and enhanced pedestrian safety features, including a barrier-separated 5-foot sidewalk and a 10-foot-wide trail.

The bridge was built with multiple revenue sources, including Local Agency Program funding, which is federal funding distributed by the Florida Department of Transportation for local projects.

The Maydell Bridge Project also received $3,734,105 in federal funding. The total project cost was $11.4 million.

County commissioners and County Administrator Bonnie Wise were on hand to speak at the ribbon cutting about how the new bridge will impact the community.

The Maydell Drive Bridge connects the Progress Village community to the north with Adamo Drive, and provides connections east and west to Tampa and Brandon.