WASHINGTON – Lawmakers representing Massachusetts in Washington are urging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to replace the aging Bourne and Sagamore Bridges.
In a letter sent to the Army Corps’ top two officials Tuesday, Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, and Congressman Bill Keating are asking for the federal agency to adopt the recommendation of the Army Corps’ New England District to replace the bridges.
The recommendation was made in the draft Major Rehabilitation Evaluation Report released in October.
The recommended plan calls for building two new bridges with four travel lanes each and 2 additional auxiliary lanes for acceleration and deceleration.
Both new bridges would also include appropriate bike and pedestrian access.
The report indicated that the bridges are structurally deficient and in desperate need of replacement.
The New England District also determined that a full replacement of the bridges would be more cost-effective than repairing and rehabilitating the existing spans.
Markey, Warren and Keating previously applauded the draft report and its recommendation as significant progress toward addressing the needs of these two vital infrastructure projects.
“Replacing both the Bourne and Sagamore Bridges is not only the best solution for the Cape and Islands, it is the only viably long-term solution for the nearly 250,000 residents and businesses of the region who rely on this vital connection to the rest of Massachusetts,” the lawmakers said in their letter to Lieutenant General Todd Semonite and Assistant Secretary of the Army R.D. James.
“We urge you to adopt the recommendation of the USACE’s New England District: full replacement of both canal bridges.”
The full letter can be viewed by clicking here.
Markey recently hosted a meeting in Boston with members of Warren’s and Keating’s offices, and federal, state and local stakeholders to discuss a joint funding plan for projects to replace both bridges.
The lawmakers also expressed their concern in the letter about the possibility discussed at the meeting that the Army Corps may still choose to ignore the recommendation and continue to repair and rehabilitate the current structures.
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