The Shands Bridge connects Green Cove Springs with St. Johns County. The bridge will be closed during the coming weekend. | Florida Department of Transportation
Published on January 6, 2026 at 2:11 pm
Free local news and info, in your inbox at 6 a.m. M-F. Sign up for the Jacksonville Today newsletter.
The state will close the Shands Bridge this weekend for more routine bridge maintenance, forcing drivers to travel miles out of their way to cross the St. Johns River.
And it could happen again the next weekend, the Florida Department of Transportation warns.
Jacksonville Today thanks our sponsors. Become one.
The bridge will close at 9 p.m. Friday and reopen at 4 a.m. Monday. If more time is needed for the project, FDOT said it will shut down the two-lane span again on the following weekend — Jan. 16-19.
During the closure, drivers should use the Buckman Bridge as a detour. That is about 21 miles through Clay County to get to the Buckman Bridge for drivers on the west side of the St. Johns River, then almost 30 miles for those detouring on the river’s east side through Fruit Cove and Mandarin.
The FDOT has done numerous single-lane and full closures of the Shands Bridge since late 2024 for maintenance projects.
Jacksonville Today thanks our sponsors. Become one.
This weekend’s maintenance operation also includes paving work on State Road 16 between Mobro Marine in Green Cove Springs and the Shands Bridge. Single-lane closures will be in place in this area west of the bridge throughout the weekend, although access to homes and businesses along the route will be managed by a traffic flagger, FDOT said.
The new Shands Bridge
The existing Shands Bridge is set for replacement in 2030. Construction has begun on a new 9,300-foot span connecting Clay and St. Johns counties.
The new bridge will have dual 12-foot-wide travel lanes in each direction, 12-foot-wide outside shoulders and a bicycle and pedestrian path on the northbound side.
The new bridge will be part of the First Coast Expressway, a 46-mile toll road that will ultimately connect parts of Duval, Clay and St. Johns counties.
