The years-long project to replace the Sagamore Bridge has cleared a major hurdle with the release of the request for proposals by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
MassDOT has issued an RFP to the three shortlisted joint ventures which will compete for the $1.6 billion contract.
On Monday, Sept. 28, Interim Director of MasDOT Phil Eng told a gathering in the former Christmas Tree Shops store at the foot of the existing Sagamore Bridge that during the RFP process, “we will be working with the selected design and build teams that have been shortlisted on the scope and the requirements of this project as they prepare detailed proposals. The three joint venture teams have been carefully vetted to have the experience the skills and financial backing necessary to complete such a large-scale megaproject like the Cape Cod bridges.”
Earlier this month, MASSDOT received federal authorization for $956 million in grant funds for construction with an additional $371 million due to be authorized in mid-October.
“That means this project is moving forward,” Eng said.
Congressman Bill Keating, D-MA9, told the gathering that all through the lead-in to the bridge replacement , he has been asked if the project will ever come to fruition.
“To all those people who asked…..and I’ve had them as ever since I’ve lived here and as ever since I’ve I’ve represented here…..asking will this ever be done, today, for the Sagamore Bridge we say it will be done. To all those people and all those questions, we say ‘yes,’” Keating said.
If all goes as anticipated, construction will begin in late 2027. The state has already acquired by eminent domain several houses that stand in the footprint of the new Sagamore Bridge and its approaches.
The Sagamore Bridge replacement is the first step toward replacing both canal bridges. Funding for replacement of the Bourne Bridge has not yet been secured.
The town of Bourne will take the brunt of the impact from the bridge replacement project.
Chairwoman of the Bourne Select Board Melissa Ferretti said relations between the town and the myriad agencies involved in the project are good.
“As the project advances, Bourne’s focus will be on partnership, coordination and clear communication. We will continue working closely with MassDOT and our regional partners to make sure local impacts are understood early and addressed thoughtfully.”
Ferretti said minimizing impact on Bourne residents is vital. “We remain mindful of the scale of this effort and will continue to communicate responsibly as we advance through these days. Our goal is to get the job done with the least disruption to our residents,” Ferretti said.
State Sen. Dylan Fernandes, a Democrat who represents the Plymouth and Barnstable District, called the bridges a “lifeline” for people who live on the Cape and Islands.
“More than 40 percent of the workers who serve this area come over the bridges every day, ,” Fernandes said. “Millions of visitors cross these bridges each year to power our economic engine which is our tourism industry.”
Fernandes also said the bridge replacement project is overdue. “This is the biggest project in our region’s history since the creation of the canal well over a century ago. Our existing bridges were the top bridges of their time. Unfortunately for us that was in the 1930s.” Fernandes said anyone crossing the existing bridges today would agree with an Army Corps of Engineers study that called them functionally obsolete.
During public information sessions, local residents have raised concerns about traffic during construction. Transportation officials maintain that since the existing Sagamore Bridge and local roads will remain open, traffic should not be much worse than normal. But they said arrangements will be made to halt construction at a few peak travel times, such as around the Fourth of July.
