PENSACOLA, Fla. (WKRG) — The ‘General Daniel Chappie James Jr. Bridge’, commonly known as Three Mile Bridge, is expected to open February 13, according to Senator Doug Broxson.

Friday morning, lawmakers acknowledged the work that’s been done on the bridge during the first official drive over.

“Today we want to celebrate those men and women, blue collar workers, that have been there day and night, in cold and hot, and have delivered a project that’s unprecedented for the pan handle,” said Senator Broxson. “A bridge that’s the biggest public project that we’ve ever had, it’s going to make a statement not only for our region, but for our state. It’s going to be an economic driver that we’ve not seen before.”

Within less than two weeks, traffic will flow on both sides of the bridge that connects Gulf Breeze and Pensacola. Currently, traffic is flowing in both directions on what will be the east lane of the bridge.

Portions of the bridge, equipped with 3 lanes, two 10 feet shoulders and a pedestrian path in both directions, will open while crews finish remaining work.

The speed limit on the bridge is 45 miles per hour.

The Pensacola Bay Bridge was damaged during Hurricane Sally in 2020, when barges broke loose and hit it forcing traffic to be diverted to Garcon Point. Part of the Pensacola Bay Bridge reopened to traffic last June, but now six lanes will open.