If weekly commutes bring you anywhere near the Platt Street bridge, you’ve probably seen the damage by now. A large-scale wastewater cave-in along the center lane of Platt Street has shut down the thoroughfare from Plant Avenue east to Bayshore Boulevard.

Repairs began around Nov. 7, and are expected to be complete sometime around Nov. 10 ... hopefully. If not, through traffic will continue to be detoured north on Plant Avenue to Kennedy Boulevard. Access to local businesses will be available via Plant Avenue to Cardy Street.

City representatives said the collapse was caused by failure of a 24-inch wastewater pipe. No wastewater overflowed from the cave-in and the wastewater system in the area is functioning properly. 

Back in August, drivers felt a similar pain when part of Bayshore Boulevard caved in after leaky joints in an underground stormwater culvert box loosened dirt below the road’s surface. The road was shut down for days while crews worked diligently on repairs.

In a previous interview, Stormwater Director Chuck Walter said cave-ins occur on about a monthly basis throughout the city. We don’t hear about these collapses with much frequency because they often occur in backyards or other private areas.

Because of roadway and pipe system age, neighborhoods like South and West Tampa see the greatest stability problems. This summer, a wastewater pipeline cave-in near the intersection of Rivershore Drive and Sligh Avenue in central Tampa required the replacement of some 140 feet of pipe, spanning the entire width of Sligh. The original pipe was more than 50 years old.

Walter said the city’s stormwater department is developing a program to address citywide cave-in issues. It definitely seems to be time – if things continue in this manner, our system won’t make it past middle age.