Environmental
On August 11, 2023, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), serving as lead federal agency for the Cape Cod Bridges Program, issued a determination that the Program will require the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in accordance with requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). FHWA published a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an EIS for the Cape Cod Bridges Program in the Federal Register on February 29, 2024. This NOI initiates the public scoping period that will assist in the preparation of the Draft EIS. The NOI also provides agency contact information to support public comment. A combined Final EIS/record of decision (ROD) Document is expected to be issued towards the end of February 2026.
Additional environmental details are available on the Environmental page.
Grants and funding
One of the largest considerations for the program is sourcing the necessary funding. The Program team is working to identify potential modes of funding as federal policies change and new opportunities become available.
On Friday, December 15, 2023, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that the Program had been awarded $372 million in competitive discretionary grant funding through the Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant (MPDG) for the Sagamore Bridge. This represents the full amount that the Program applied for in August 2023.
On July 12, 2024, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that the Program won nearly $1 billion through the Bridge Investment Program (BIP) for the Sagamore Bridge. This brings the total amount of federal funding secured for the Sagamore Bridge to nearly $1.72 billion, in addition to the $700 million in state funding pledged to the Program.
Additionally, on May 6, 2024, the Program applied for MPDG funding for the Bourne Bridge, and on August 1, 2024, the Program submitted a BIP application for the Bourne Bridge.
MassDOT and USACE will also continue to monitor developments at the federal level for future grant opportunities.
Public outreach
The Cape Cod Bridges Program Team is continuing its inclusive and robust efforts to inform and engage the public, in line with our comprehensive Public Involvement Plan.
Since Summer 2021, a total of six rounds of public outreach have been conducted. Throughout each round of outreach, we have coordinated closely with stakeholders including the Program’s Advisory Group, elected officials, regional transit and planning agencies, local business owners, community organizations, and members of the public.
For more information on the public outreach process and outreach efforts, please visit the Public Outreach page. To get in touch with the Program team, submit a comment or query here.
