Cape Cod bridge replacement project reaches key agreement

Matthew Medsger, Boston Herald on Oct 6, 2024

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A much-needed agreement between the federal government and the Bay State to replace the Sagamore Bridge has been reached, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The Corps owns both the Bourne and Sagamore bridges, a pair of aging spans that cross the Cape Cod Canal, and has determined that the bridges will need to be replaced lest the cost of continuous repairs continues to mount.

The Bay State has been working with the Army Corps of Engineers since 2020 to secure funding for the replacement of both bridges, expected to cost upwards of $4.5 billion.

Now, according to USACE, the state and the feds have signed a Memorandum of Agreement in the multi-billion dollar plan to begin replacement of the Sagamore Bridge.

“This agreement is another critical step to benefit the people of Massachusetts and visitors who depend on safe, resilient, and modernized access to Cape Cod and the islands. It is a tremendous achievement to have reached this point in the plan to replace the Cape Cod bridges,” Michael Conner, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, said in a statement.

The idea of the agreement, the Army Corps says, is to develop a solution to the Bridge problem that will “serve this region for decades to come.” The pair of bridges cannot be repaired and must be replaced, according to a report released by the members of the state’s congressional delegation in 2023 and USACE’s own determinations.

“Cape Cod residents and businesses rely on the Sagamore and Bourne bridges for almost every aspect of their lives. The current state of disrepair of the Bridges is already negatively impacting the communities that live and work on and around the Cape – making access to education, medical care, emergency services, and reasonably-priced goods and services increasingly out of reach,” the report says.

That report, prepared for U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and U.S. Rep. Bill Keating, demonstrates that the dilapidated states of the 90-year old Bourne and Sagamore Bridges are already costing Cape businesses money and impacting quality of life for the people who live and visit the region.

Not taking action, the report indicates, would be “catastrophic.”

“Without federal funding to replace the bridges, the situation will continue to deteriorate, causing potentially catastrophic results,” the report reads, in part.

“This Memorandum of Agreement is clear evidence that our work is paying off. I want to thank Governor Healey, Senator Warren, Congressman Keating, and the Biden-Harris administration for their partnership to make this critical project a reality,” Markey said in a statement after the funding was announced.

The federally owned bridges are the only road route over the Cape Cod Canal for the 260,000 residents and the about 5 million annual tourists heading to or leaving the Cape. Gov. Maura Healey, shortly after taking office, announced the scope of the project would shift focus away from the original plan to simultaneous replace both spans, to fixing the bridges one at a time and starting with the Sagamore first.

Healey hailed the agreement struck between her administration and the federal government as an important step forward in a necessary process.

“We continue to make important progress in our efforts to rebuild both Cape Cod Bridges. After securing $1.72 billion in federal funding, we’re now moving forward with an agreement with the U.S. Department of the Army and the Federal Highway Administration that will allocate a crucial piece of that funding and allow us to begin construction on the Sagamore Bridge,” Healey said in a statement.

U.S. Army Col. Justin Pabis, the commanding officer of USACE, New England District, described the project as “a major investment in the future of Cape Cod and New England.”

“The project will offer us a safer bridge, with more lanes and greater accessibility for the thousands of residents and visitors who rely on this route connection every day. This collaboration between USACE, MassDOT and the FHWA marks our shared commitment to giving the Cape a modern and resilient bridge, capable of meeting the needs of tomorrow,” he said in a statement.

The MOA will, according to USACE, “advance key components of the overall project,” and comes with a promise of $350 million from the feds.

The Healey Administration says that, in addition to the $1.72 billion they’ve already secured toward replacement of both bridges, the State has authorized $700 million to help with the project.

“The MOA brings us another step closer to construction and beginning the necessary improvements this Administration has committed to both the Cape Cod community and the Commonwealth as a whole,” MassDOT Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver said in a statement.

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