Section 117.317 - Okeechobee Waterway(a)Exempt vessels. This term means public vessels of the United States and tugs with tows.(b)Evans Crary (SR A1A) bridge, mile 3.4 at Stuart. The draw shall open on signal; except that from December 1 through May 1, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays, the draw need open only on the hour and half-hour. On Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays, December 1 through May 1, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., the draw need open only on the hour, 20 minutes after the hour, and 40 minutes after the hour. Exempt vessels shall be passed at any time.(c)Florida East Coast Railroad bridge, mile 7.4 at Stuart. The draw shall operate as follows:(1) The bridge is not constantly tended.(2) The draw is normally in the fully open position, displaying flashing green lights to indicate that vessels may pass.(3) When a train approaches the bridge, the navigation lights go to flashing red and a horn sounds four blasts, pauses, and then repeats four blasts. After an eight minute delay, the draw lowers and locks, providing the scanning equipment reveals nothing under the draw. The draw remains down for a period of eight minutes or while the approach track circuit is occupied.(4) After the train has cleared, the draw opens and the lights return to flashing green.(d) The SR 707 (Dixie Highway) Bridge, mile 7.5 at Stuart, shall open on signal; except when the adjacent railroad bridge is in the closed position, the draw need not open. The draw must open immediately upon opening of the railroad bridge to pass all accumulated vessels requesting an opening.(e)Seaboard System Railroad bridge, mile 28.2 at Indiantown. The draw of the CSX Railroad Bridge, mile 28.2 at Indiantown, FL, shall operate as follows:(1) The swing bridge is not tendered locally, but will be monitored and operated by a remote operator.(2) Marine radio communication shall be maintained, by the remote operator, with mariners near the bridge for the safety of navigation. Visual monitoring of the waterway shall be maintained with the use of cameras. Detection sensors shall be installed for the detection of vessels entering the radius of the swing span of the bridge while in operation.(3) From 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., the bridge will be maintained in the open to navigation position and will display green lights to indicate that the span is fully open.(4) When a train approaches, the remote operator shall monitor for vessels in the vicinity of the bridge. Provided the sensors do not detect a vessel entering the swing radius of the bridge, the operator shall initiate the closing sequence, which includes the sounding of a horn. The span will remain in the closed position for the entire time the track circuit is occupied displaying red lights.(5) After the train has cleared the track circuit, the span shall open and green lights will be displayed.(6) From 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., the bridge will be in the closed to navigation position and will open if at least a three hour advance notice is requested via marine radio channel 9 VHF or telephone (813) 677-3974.(7) The bridge shall not be operated from the remote location in the following events: Failure or obstruction of the detection sensors, remote actuation systems, cameras, or marine radio communications, or when directed by the Coast Guard. In these situations, a bridge operator must be on-site and locally operate the bridge.(f) Florida East Coast Railroad bridge, mile 38.0, at Port Mayaca. (1) The bridge is not constantly tended.(2) The draw is normally in the fully open position displaying flashing green lights to indicate that vessels may pass.(3) When a train approaches the bridge it will stop and a crewmember will observe the waterway for approaching vessels, which will be allowed to pass. Upon manual signal, the bridge lights will go to flashing red, and the horn will sound four blasts, pause, then repeat four blasts, then the draw will lower and lock, providing scanning equipment reveals nothing under the span.(4) After the train has cleared, the draw will open, and the lights will return to flashing green.(g)Belle Glade Dike (SR 71) bridge, mile 60.7 between Torry Island and Lake Shore. The draw shall open on signal from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday through Sunday. At all other times, the draw need not be opened for the passage of vessels.(h)Seaboard System Railroad bridge, mile 78.3 at Moore Haven. The draw shall open on signal; except that, from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. the draw need not be opened for the passage of vessels.(i)Highway bridges at Moore Haven (mile 78.4) La Belle (mile 103.0), Denaud (mile 108.2), Alva (mile 116.0), and Olga (mile 126.3). The draws shall open on signal; except that, from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. the draws shall open on signal if at least three hours notice is given.(j)Caloosahatchee River Bridge (SR 29), Mile 103, Labelle, Florida. The Caloosahatchee River bridge (SR 29), mile 103, shall open on signal, except that from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays, the bridge need not open. Exempt vessels shall be passed at any time.(k) Florida East Coast Railroad (FEC) Bridge, mile 7.41, at Stuart. The draw shall operate as follows: (1) The drawbridge will be maintained in the fully open-to-navigation position, except during periods when it is closed for the passage of train traffic, to conduct inspections, and to perform maintenance and repairs authorized by the Coast Guard.(2) The drawbridge will not be closed for more than 50 consecutive minutes in any given hour during daytime operations (6 a.m. to 8 p.m.) and for more than 7 total hours during daytime operations (6 a.m. to 8 p.m.).(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (k)(1), the drawbridge will open and remain open to navigation for a fixed 10-minute period at the top of each hour from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.(4) From 8:01 p.m. until 5:59 a.m. daily, the drawbridge will remain in the fully open-to-navigation position, except during periods when it is closed for the passage of train traffic, to conduct inspections, and to perform maintenance and repairs authorized by the Coast Guard. The drawbridge will not be closed more than 60 consecutive minutes.(5) If a train is in the track circuit at the start of a fixed opening period, the opening may be delayed up to, but not more than, five minutes. Once the train has cleared the circuit, the bridge must open immediately for navigation to begin the fixed opening period.(6) The drawbridge will be tended from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., daily. The bridge tender will monitor VHF-FM channels 9 and 16 and will provide estimated times of drawbridge openings and closures, or any operational information requested. Operational information will be provided 24 hours a day by telephone at (772) 403-1005.(7) The drawbridge owner will maintain a mobile application. The drawbridge owner will publish drawbridge opening times, and the drawbridge owner will provide timely updates to schedules, including but not limited to, impacts due to emergency circumstances, inspections, maintenance, and repairs authorized by the Coast Guard.(8) Signs will be posted and visible to marine traffic, displaying VHF radio contact information, application information, and the telephone number for the bridge tender.(9) A copy of the drawbridge logbook for the previous week will be provided to the Seventh Coast Guard District Bridge Manager by 4 p.m. each Monday.CGD7 85-50, 51 FR 12319, Apr. 10, 1986 83 FR 30038, 6/27/2018; 86 FR 39963, 8/25/2021; 89 FR 7622, 3/6/2024; 89 FR 71184, 9/3/2024 For FEDERAL REGISTER citations affecting § 117.317, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.govinfo.gov.
Effective Date Note: At 89 FR 64369, Aug. 7, 2024, § 117.261 was amended by staying paragraph (c) and adding paragraph (k), effective Aug. 9, 2024 through Dec. 31, 2024. At 89 FR 71184, Sept. 3, 2024, the instruction was corrected to read "Section 117.317, effective Sept. 3, 2024.