FHWA signs off on Cape Cod bridges; Bourne and county press for MOU to address local impacts

County Chair announced that the Federal Highway Administration has issued a Record of Decision approving the final environmental impact statement for the Cape Cod bridge replacements, a key NEPA milestone that allows the project to advance toward design and procurement.

At a joint session in Bourne, select board members urged the county and state project leads to negotiate a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that would spell out local mitigation, access protections and long‑term maintenance commitments for road and rail assets. A select board vice chair said the town is prepared to host smaller, focused meetings to lay out MOU priorities, including access to Canal Road, traffic management and replacement‑period impacts that could especially affect Bourne.

Commissioner Ron Bergstrom and others emphasized that the town’s concerns extend beyond the vehicular bridges to the vertical‑lift railroad bridge and other federal assets that could be divested. The chair urged including railroad‑bridge health and potential MassDOT or other state involvement in long‑term maintenance conversations, saying such assets matter to both local mobility and regional freight and passenger rail services.

“Because you people go back and forth all the time…we need to plan,” a select board member said, urging the county to press for a dedicated long‑term maintenance funding source in state budgets. Commissioners agreed to explore coordinated advocacy and to support Bourne in follow‑up talks with project leaders.

Officials said the NEPA Record of Decision is the first of its kind in Massachusetts since 1986 for an EIS and that the project will move into next phases, including bid preparation. The board recommended ongoing, closer coordination with town officials to protect municipal interests during construction and to pursue funding for bridge maintenance and local mitigation.