Howard Frankland Bridge
W. Howard Frankland Bridge | |
|---|---|
Aerial view of the bridge in 2018 | |
| Coordinates | 27°55′41″N 82°35′15″W / 27.92793°N 82.58755°W |
| Carries | 8 lanes of I-275 |
| Crosses | Old Tampa Bay |
| Locale | St. Petersburg to Tampa, Florida |
| Other name(s) | Howard Franklin, Frankland Bridge |
| Named for | William Howard Frankland |
| Maintained by | Florida Department of Transportation |
| ID number | 150107 (northbound) 150210 (southbound) |
| Characteristics | |
| Total length | 15,872 ft (4,838 m) (northbound) 15,900 ft (4,846 m) (southbound) |
| Width | 58.4 ft (17.8 m) (northbound) 68.9 ft (21.0 m) (southbound) |
| Clearance below | 43 ft (13 m) (northbound) 48.9 ft (14.9 m) (southbound) |
| History | |
| Opened | 1960 (former northbound) 1990 (northbound, former southbound 2025 (southbound) |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | 174,000 (2024) |
| Location | |
Interactive map of W. Howard Frankland Bridge | |
The W. Howard Frankland Bridge is the central fixed-link bridge spanning Old Tampa Bay from St. Petersburg, Florida to Tampa, Florida. It is one of three bridges connecting Hillsborough County and Pinellas County; the others being Gandy Bridge and Courtney Campbell Causeway. The bridge carries Interstate 275 and is by far the most traveled of the bay's bridges.
Work began in fall 2020 to rebuild this bridge with separate pedestrian and bicycle lanes, it was completed, and the new southbound span opened, overnight on March 24th 2025. The new bridge span is north of the old bridge. The old southbound bridge was converted to northbound lanes, overnight on July 9th, 2025, taking all traffic off the oldest, and previously northbound span, permanently.
The bridge is often incorrectly referred to as the Howard Franklin Bridge.