Drivers voice concerns after car ends up in St. Johns River below the Buckman Bridge

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Drivers are voicing their concerns after troopers say a woman crashed her car and ended up in the St. Johns River overnight.

Florida Highway Patrol said she was driving north on the southbound side.

You can hear traffic in one neighborhood next to I-295, but you can’t see it.

Michael Meyer hears a lot.

“I can hear it from inside the house when car accidents happen there. I can’t even tell you how many times, numerous times for sure,” Meyer said.

As a tow truck driver, he’s said he drives over the bridge every day.

So when he heard about the driver who crashed right before the bridge, he said he wasn’t surprised.

FHP said a 20-year-old woman ended up in the St. Johns River last night after hitting a guardrail while driving toward the Buckman Bridge.

FHP said luckily the water below is shallow, and a good Samaritan helped the woman to shore.

Although the driver did not exactly crash on the bridge, the incident is opening up more dialogue about driver safety in the area.

Meyer said he would like to see more breakdown spots on the bridge.

Other neighbors off I-295 said drivers are the problem.

“Follow the rules of the road. Try not to cut people off. When it says go 50, try to go less than 80,” Charlene Birchell said.

Birchell said she’s not surprised a car ended up in the river.

“Honestly I’ve been kind of waiting for it to happen. I am glad that she was okay,” Birchell said.

FHP has not released how fast the driver was going at the time or identified her.

Action News Jax reached out to the Florida Department of Transportation about guardrail safety.

Officials said the crash occurred on a federal road and said the road meets or exceeds all safety requirements.

Officials also said what led to the incident is important when evaluating any safety enhancements.

Action News Jax first told you back in 2014 when a driver, 48-year-old William Maddox of Tampa, died after his pickup truck went over the bridge into the water.

A woman named Luma Kajy was killed in 2010 when another car knocked her SUV off the bridge.

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