The Cape Coral Bridge is a bridge located in

Southwest Florida Southwest Florida is the region along the southwest Gulf coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is known for its beaches, subtropical landscape, and winter resort economy. Definitions of the region vary, though its boundaries are genera ...

. It spans the

Caloosahatchee River The Caloosahatchee River is a river on the southwest Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of Florida in the United States, approximately long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National ...

connecting McGregor and

Cape Coral Cape Coral is a city in Lee County, Florida, United States, on the Gulf of Mexico. Founded in 1957, the city's population had grown to 194,016 as of the 2020 census, a 26% increase from 154,309 at the 2010 census, making it the ninth-most p ...

. It is made up of two parallel fixed spans, each long.

History

The original span opened for traffic on March 14, 1964, with one lane in each direction. In 1989, a second parallel span opened south of the first span, with two lanes for eastbound traffic, and westbound traffic using both lanes on the original span. In conjunction with the new eastbound span, a four lane overpass was constructed over the intersection of State Road 867 (McGregor Boulevard) just east of the bridge. The Cape Coral Bridge was the only link between

Fort Myers A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

and

until 1997, when the Midpoint Memorial Bridge opened just north of the Cape Coral Bridge on the Caloosahatchee River. The bridge is owned by the Lee County Department of Transportation. There is currently a two dollar toll in effect for westbound vehicles only, and there is no tolls for eastbound traffic. Florida's statewide SunPass prepaid

electronic toll collection Electronic toll collection (ETC) is a wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or Road pricing, toll charged to vehicles using toll roads, HOV lanes, toll bridges, and toll tunnels. It is a faster alternative which is replacing Tol ...

system is accepted on the Cape Coral Bridge, along with Lee County's "Leeway" prepaid toll system, which is also used on the Midpoint Bridge, and the

Sanibel Causeway The Sanibel Causeway is a causeway in Southwest Florida that spans San Carlos Bay, connecting Sanibel Island with the Florida mainland in Punta Rassa, Florida, Punta Rassa. The causeway consists of three separate two-lane bridge spans, and two- ...

. However, there is a variable pricing scheme in effect.

Future

Due to the age of the 1964 structure, there are currently plans to rebuild the Cape Coral Bridge. Initially, plans included replacing the westbound Cape Coral Bridge with a new three-lane bridge and widening the eastbound bridge (built in 1989) to three lanes on both direction. In 2023, the county instead decided to replace both bridges with new three-lane bridges for a total of six lanes. Additionally, the project will also allow pedestrian access to the bridge, improve bicycle lanes and improve the intersection between Cape Coral Parkway and Del Prado Boulevard. The project is expected to begin in 2026.

References

{{Crossings navbox , structure = Crossings , place =

, bridge = Cape Coral Bridge , bridge signs = , upstream = Midpoint Memorial Bridge , upstream signs = , downstream =

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

, downstream signs = Toll bridges in Florida Bridges completed in 1964 Bridges completed in 1989 Buildings and structures in Fort Myers, Florida Road bridges in Florida Bridges over the Caloosahatchee River Cape Coral, Florida Transportation in Fort Myers, Florida Concrete bridges in the United States Girder bridges in the United States Bridges in Lee County, Florida 1964 establishments in Florida