Brooks Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Brooks Bridge is a four-lane steel and concrete structure that carries highway U.S. Route 98
over Santa Rosa Sound
(mile 223 of the Gulf Coast Intracoastal Waterway
) just west of the Choctawhatchee Bay
between downtown Fort Walton Beach, Florida
and the three-mile section of Okaloosa Island
controlled by the city of Fort Walton Beach. It is named for John T. Brooks, a long-time local developer and city figure. It has a charted clearance of 50 feet above the water.
Constructed in 1965–1966, it replaced a low-level steel through-truss center-pier swing-span structure immediately west of the current bridge which had become increasingly unreliable with age, the center-pivoting span having been known to get stuck in the open position while allowing for transit of maritime traffic. Removal of the steel work and the old concrete pivot pier began in March 1966 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the new Brooks Bridge reached completion with removal taking about three weeks.
As the only local crossing of the Santa Rosa Sound, it is subject to traffic congestion. An additional bridge between Fort Walton Beach and Okaloosa Island has been discussed for many years, but as of 2011, no firm plans have ever emerged.
U.S. Route 98
U.S. Route 98 is an east–west United States highway that runs from western Mississippi to southern Florida. It was established in 1933 as a route between Pensacola, Florida and Apalachicola, Florida, and has since been extended westward into Mississippi and eastward across the Florida...
over Santa Rosa Sound
Santa Rosa Sound
Santa Rosa Sound is a sound connecting Pensacola Bay and Choctawhatchee Bay in Florida. The northern shore consists of the Fairpoint Peninsula and portions of the mainland in Santa Rosa County and Okaloosa County...
(mile 223 of the Gulf Coast Intracoastal Waterway
Intracoastal Waterway
The Intracoastal Waterway is a 3,000-mile waterway along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. Some lengths consist of natural inlets, salt-water rivers, bays, and sounds; others are artificial canals...
) just west of the Choctawhatchee Bay
Choctawhatchee Bay
Choctawhatchee Bay is a bay in the Emerald Coast region of the Florida Panhandle. The bay, located within Okaloosa and Walton counties, has a surface area of 129 mi2...
between downtown Fort Walton Beach, Florida
Fort Walton Beach, Florida
Fort Walton Beach is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. As of 2005, the population estimate for Fort Walton Beach was 19,992, and as of 2010, the population estimate for Fort Walton Beach is 19,507 recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and the three-mile section of Okaloosa Island
Okaloosa Island
Okaloosa Island is a regionally used term for a small section of larger Santa Rosa Island located in Okaloosa County, Florida. Okaloosa Island is home to hundreds of residential homes, high rise condominiums and major hotels and motels. The area is unincorporated and uses Fort Walton Beach as a...
controlled by the city of Fort Walton Beach. It is named for John T. Brooks, a long-time local developer and city figure. It has a charted clearance of 50 feet above the water.
Constructed in 1965–1966, it replaced a low-level steel through-truss center-pier swing-span structure immediately west of the current bridge which had become increasingly unreliable with age, the center-pivoting span having been known to get stuck in the open position while allowing for transit of maritime traffic. Removal of the steel work and the old concrete pivot pier began in March 1966 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the new Brooks Bridge reached completion with removal taking about three weeks.
As the only local crossing of the Santa Rosa Sound, it is subject to traffic congestion. An additional bridge between Fort Walton Beach and Okaloosa Island has been discussed for many years, but as of 2011, no firm plans have ever emerged.