State hits milestone in Cape bridge replacement

The replacement of the Sagamore Bridge hit a new phase this week as workers began clearing trees and vegetation on the East side of the Cape Cod Canal, around where the foundations for the new span will be built.
After the clearing, Massachusetts Department of Transportation plans to start boring holes 100 feet below ground in the spring as part of testing for the new foundations.
Luisa Paiewonsky, Executive Director of the Megaprojects Delivery Office is the project manager for the bridge replacement project. She tells CAI News that the latest step is in line with the state’s target of getting traffic on the new Sagamore bridge by 2033, exactly a century after construction began on the original bridges.
She said that they have the support of the Maura Healey Administration to move the project forward.
“The governor has given us all the resources we need and the direction from the administration is full steam ahead,” Paiewonsky said.
The testing will be noisy for some residents in the area and will include driving piles into the ground, the project manager said. But she said that they will give residents plenty of notice.
“So we hope that people will be patient with us as they hear a little bit of noise over the spring or summer,” Paiewonsky said. “It is all toward our ultimate goal of replacement of the Sagamore Bridge.”
The testing work is expected to continue until 2027.
MassDOT said the work will cause periodic and temporary lane closures on Route 6, but at least one lane of travel will be maintained at all times. No wide loads will be permitted to cross the bridge while the lane restrictions are in place.