The Bourne Bridge (foreground) and the Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge (background) at sunrise. iStock photo
State officials have issued a request for proposals for a team to design and build a new Sagamore Bridge, and the firm that wins the bid must agree to a project labor agreement.
The RFP comes after MassDOT issued a request for letters in March and request for qualifications in May. The deadline for RFPs is May 2027, according to a MassDOT filing, which estimates the preliminary project cost to total more than $1.6 billion. MassDOT said Monday that it expects construction on the project to begin in winter 2027.
“Today’s RFP release demonstrates that we are continuing to move this critical project forward with urgency, discipline and a clear focus on delivery,” Interim Transportation Secretary Phil Eng said in a statement.
The RFP said the firm selected will be required to execute a PLA with the Southeastern Massachusetts Building Trades Council “for its affiliated Local Unions” and the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters for the construction work associated with the project.
MassDOT plans to lead construction of the new bridge “in partnership with” the Federal Highway Administration and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which owns the Sagamore and Bourne bridges, Gov. Maura Healey’s office said Monday.
A recent study from the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance found PLAs can lead to higher costs. And in a hypothetical scenario, the study estimated having a PLA for the Sagamore Bridge replacement could cost another $293 million. A spokesperson for Healey’s office has called the study “junk research” and shared analyses arguing PLAs don’t raise costs.
Along with the RFP, Healey’s office announced the state has received $956 million in federal funding for the project. That funding, along with more than $36 million the state has received for pre-construction work, accounts for the federal government’s $993 million grant project award, according to MassDOT spokesperson Amelia Aubourg. Healey’s office said the Federal Highway Administration is expected to authorize another $371 million in grant funding in mid-October.
The project is also supported by $350 million in US Army Corps of Engineers funding and $700 million the state has committed for both the Sagamore and Bourne bridges, according to Aubourg.
MassDOT expects a new eastbound span to open in 2033 and to keep two lanes of traffic in each direction open throughout the construction process.
The project will include two new bridge spans, “reconstructed roadway interchanges, improved local and regional traffic movements and safer, more modern infrastructure” for Cape Cod residents, according to the governor’s office.
Replacing the Sagamore Bridge is the first phase of a broader Cape Cod Bridges Program, which also aims to replace the Bourne Bridge. MassDOT and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have applied for more than $1 billion in federal funding for the Bourne Bridge, which is also 91 years old, and are awaiting a decision.
U.S. Rep. Bill Keating said he worked for almost a decade with U.S. Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren as well as state and local partners to secure federal funding for replacement of the Sagamore Bridge. Keating added the project will “improve daily life, ensure critical access for first responders, and bolster our economy.”
State officials say Cape Cod is home to around 230,000 year-round residents and more than 5 million visitors.
