Coast Guard reduces openings for Royal Park, Southern Boulevard bridges

Jodie Wagner, Palm Beach Daily News
Updated ·2 min read

Ongoing efforts by the town to modify the operating schedules for two of the three bridges that connect West Palm Beach to Palm Beach have proved successful.

Following the launch of a temporary schedule alteration for the Flagler Memorial Bridge in August and the public comment period that accompanied it, the Coast Guard agreed to expand temporary schedule alterations to the Royal Park Bridge and the Southern Boulevard Bridge, the town said Wednesday in a release.

The new schedules, which took effect Tuesday and continue through June 30, reduce bridge openings during peak Monday-through-Friday travel times.

Related: As traffic woes build, county and FDOT at odds over Royal Park Bridge lane closures

Cars drive over the Southern Boulevard bridge that connects West Palm Beach and Palm Beach. Construction on the bridge was completed last year as part of the $97 million Southern Boulevard Bridges Replacement Project.
Cars drive over the Southern Boulevard bridge that connects West Palm Beach and Palm Beach. Construction on the bridge was completed last year as part of the $97 million Southern Boulevard Bridges Replacement Project.

Here are the schedules:

  • Flagler Memorial Bridge: Monday through Friday from 7:30 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m., opens on the quarter-hour (8:15 a.m., 4:15 p.m., 5:15 p.m.). For the remainder of the day and on weekends and federal holidays, opens on the quarter- and three-quarter hour.

  • Royal Park Bridge: Monday through Friday from 7:29 to 9:01 a.m. and 4:01 to 6:01 p.m., opens on the three-quarter hour (7:45 a.m., 8:45 a.m., 4:45 p.m., 5:45 p.m.). For the remainder of the day and on weekends and federal holidays, opens on the hour and half-hour.

  • Southern Boulevard Bridge: Monday through Friday from 7:30 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m., opens on the quarter-hour (8:15 a.m., 4:15 p.m., 5:15 p.m.). For the remainder of the day and on weekends and federal holidays, opens on the quarter- and three-quarter hour.

The town has been working toward traffic management solutions with regional transportation partners and stakeholders to alleviate traffic congestion near all three bridges.

After the temporary operating schedule was implemented for the Flagler Memorial Bridge last summer, town officials asked the Coast Guard to modify the operating schedule for the Southern Boulevard Bridge, where the Florida Department of Transportation was wrapping up a years-long bridge replacement project.

The town also has asked for alterations to the operating schedule for the Royal Park Bridge, which underwent a $2.3 million painting project that was completed in October. Periodic lane closures on that bridge snarled traffic in the area, and a lengthy closure of the bridge gates on Sept. 26 made the congestion worse.

Palm Beach County and communities surrounding the bridge joined the town in petitioning the Coast Guard for changes to the operating schedules for all three bridges.

In an April 2023 letter, Palm Beach County Mayor Gregg Weiss asked the Coast Guard to consider "slight modifications" to those schedules to restrict openings during the morning and afternoon rush hour periods.

"It is our belief that changing the schedule would greatly improve peak-hour traffic flow on three main arterial roadways," Weiss wrote.

For more information, visit the town's Planned Traffic Impacts webpage to learn more about scheduled changes to road or traffic flows.

Jodie Wagner is a journalist at the Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at jwagner@pbdailynews.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Openings reduced for two bridges that connect West Palm and Palm Beach