COMDTINST 16590.5D governs policy guidance for the U.S. Coast Guard Bridge Program, including bridge permits and operations.
View COMDTINST 16590.5D on armypubs.army.mil
It addresses navigability, bridge construction, clearances, drawbridge operations, environmental considerations, alterations, and violation procedures. It requires Coast Guard personnel involved in Bridge Program administration to use the Instruction in alignment with its references.
Applies to: All Coast Guard unit commanders, commanding officers, officers-in-charge, deputy/assistant commandants, chiefs of headquarters directorates must comply with the policies contained.
A bridge or causeway permit is required for the construction of any bridge or causeway over or across the navigable waters of the U.S. (paragraph 1)
Repairs that do not alter the clearances, type of structure, or any integral part of the substructure or superstructure, or navigation conditions, but consist only in the replacement of worn or obsolete parts, may, if the bridge is a legally approved structure, be made as routine maintenance without approval of the Coast Guard (33 CFR § 115.40). (paragraph 1)
A Coast Guard bridge permit or change to a drawbridge operating regulation must be issued only if the proposed design, location or operating schedule will not unreasonably obstruct existing or prospective navigation. (paragraph 3)
Should the permittee request an extension of time after the permit expires and construction has not begun, the original permit does not continue in force (i.e. work cannot commence once the original permit has expired). (paragraph 3)
In accordance with 33 CFR § 117.47, clearance gauges are required for drawbridges over or across navigable waters of the United States discharging into the Atlantic Ocean south of the Delaware Bay (including the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal, DE) or into the Gulf of Mexico (including coastal waterways contiguous thereto and tributaries to such waterways and the Lower Atchafalaya River, LA), except the Mississippi River and its tributaries and outlets. (paragraph 5)