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Don't howl too loudly about Gospel Island bridge

The Florida Department of Transportation reneged on assurances its representatives made to erect a temporary bridge as it replaces the aging structure on Gospel Island. The government officials now regret that turn of events, which has angered dozens of residents who use the bridge regularly.

What the DOT has not done, however, is retreat entirely from this important project. The department is committed to building a new bridge, one that will be wider, taller and safer for drivers, pedestrians and even boaters.

While some residents and local officials are understandably upset that the temporary bridge will not be built, it would be ludicrous to fight the DOT further on the matter because the only other outcome would be disastrous.

Faced with overwhelming local opposition, the DOT would simply wave goodbye to Citrus County and move to one of the 185 bridges on its backlog, helping some other community that would be only too grateful to have such work done.

Think that wouldn't happen? Think again.

It happened in Citrus County several years ago when the DOT proposed widening U.S. 41 in Floral City. The proposal generated enormous opposition as it called for driving a four-lane highway through the heart of the historic town. Rather than develop an alternative plan, the DOT left town, and any chance for intersection improvements went with it.

This time around, if the DOT were to walk away, the people of Citrus County would have to find the money themselves to replace the 54-year-old bridge. In a county where some taxpayers are still howling about having to pay pennies to upgrade deteriorating and overcrowded major roads, taking on a multimillion-dollar bridge project would be an impossible sell.

This is not to say that Citrus County leaders should ignore the public safety implications of shutting down this connection to Inverness for several months. Those who live closest to the bridge, especially the Pritchard Island residents, have legitimate concerns about possible lengthy waits for ambulances, fire trucks and school buses.

The various governments involved in the project, however, are working on common sense solutions. These will include stationing an ambulance and other emergency vehicles at the Gospel Island fire station and adjusting the construction schedule to coincide better with the school system's summer vacation.

The DOT has been responsive to these concerns and will address the public directly at an informational meeting from 5-7 p.m. Thursday at the Citrus County Auditorium on U.S. 41.

If similar discussions at recent County Commission and Inverness City Council meetings are any indication, there will be plenty of emotional outbursts. While such frustration is understandable, it is an overreaction to circumstances that must be examined rationally.

While no one is putting a price tag on a human life, as some residents have claimed, there are certain fiscal realities that forced the DOT to alter its plans.

Building a temporary bridge would have added more than $1-million to the project, including an additional $700,000 to buy rights of way. The entire project also would have grown from eight months to 18, nearly a full year of additional inconvenience for residents. The contractor now has a financial incentive to finish ahead of schedule.

With so many bridges needing repair and replacement around the state, there simply is no justification for overspending by $1-million in one place, especially not when viable solutions to residents' concerns exist.

The DOT and Citrus County must guarantee the residents who live near the Gospel Island bridge that emergency vehicles will be stationed nearby and that other services, such as school buses and county buses for the transportation disadvantaged, will be available.

Residents of Point O'Woods and farther out will not be affected by the detour as much, or at all, because they are at the halfway point. Their travel time to Inverness will remain unchanged if they take the route using County Road 470 and State Road 44.

No one is thrilled that the DOT had to take back its temporary-bridge commitment, but there is nothing to be gained by beating up agency officials at the informational meeting for a decision that was made at a much higher level.

Citrus County and the residents of Gospel Island need this new bridge, and a state agency is standing ready to build one. The only logical course of action is to step aside and let the agency get to work.

[Last modified November 1, 2005, 05:00:06]