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South Burlington outlines East20West bicycle-pedestrian bridge project; federal obligation pending
Summary
City officials described a long-planned pedestrian-and-bicycle bridge over I-89 that South Burlington says will link Burlington, South Burlington and Williston, support downtown redevelopment and open in late 2026 if federal funding obligates. The project remains dependent on federal obligation and construction timelines.
South Burlington officials described plans for an East20West Alternative Transportation Crossing over Interstate 89 during testimony to the House Transportation Committee on Feb. 19, saying the project is in the final design phase, has local tax-increment financing identified and relies on federal discretionary grants that have not yet been obligated.
The cross-I-89 bridge is designed as a shared-use path to connect Burlington, South Burlington and Williston and to link recent housing and institutional investments near the Market/Garden Street area with employment centers such as the University of Vermont and UVM Medical Center. The city’s community development director told the committee the project has been on official maps since the 1990s and entered focused design after federal grant awards in 2022 and 2023.
South Burlington said design and right-of-way drawings are nearly complete and being packaged for federal obligation submittal; the city said it is proceeding under the assumption federal funds will be available but acknowledged the obligation system was closed at the time of testimony. City staff said the project was expected to be advertised for bid in spring and targeted to open in December 2026 if funding proceeds as planned.
Funding and roles: South Burlington said the bridge’s federal discretionary grants include a Reconnecting Communities Pilot Grant and other federal awards the city sought across multiple discretionary programs. The city has identified tax-increment financing (TIF) toward the project; during committee questioning Representative White cited a TIF contribution of roughly $4.6 million and an approximately $8 million federal grant component, and committee discussion referenced a roughly $11 million federal pass-through figure reported in budget materials. Municipal Assistance Bureau staff participating in the hearing described the federal funding as administered through federal programs rather than as a state-funded AOT obligation.
Design and features: The bridge will be about 14 feet wide for winter maintenance and two-way bicycle use, use MSE (mechanically stabilized earth) retaining walls to create a curved, tub-like structure and rise to about 34 feet above the I-89 grade to meet clearance requirements. The city described a wind screen, landscaping pockets and an art component: the project team selected a local artist, Tyler Bennett Tuoli, to produce site-specific works (about 40 bird figures) to be integrated with railings and light posts.
Operations and construction details: South Burlington staff said the bridge will be plowed using a jointed loader sized for a 14-foot path and noted the city has worked with VTrans’ Municipal Assistance Bureau on federal compliance, environmental permitting and design coordination. The city also described other nearby funded walking-and-biking investments it expects to build in stages (shared-use path segments, Garden Street connections and intersection improvements) that together are intended to create a more walkable downtown.
Committee members asked about local connections, timelines for other streetscape segments, accessibility, art funding and the expected user volumes. South Burlington said it used 2019 August count data and engineering guidance to estimate daily and annual users; the city reported higher-than-expected weekend use in on-site counts and projected increases as new housing in the city center is completed. The city said the project has remaining federal obligational uncertainty and will notify the committee if funding or schedules change.
Ending — The committee expressed support and enthusiasm for the project and asked South Burlington to report back as federal obligation and construction progress. The city asked the committee to note that although the federal grant is the project’s largest funding source, VTrans and municipal staff have worked to coordinate compliance and to keep the project on schedule.
