Army Corps of Engineers to Begin Repairs On First of Two Cape Bridges

The Sagamore Bridge, one of two aging bridges connecting Cape Cod to the Massachusetts mainland, will undergo a few months of repairs beginning March 1. While the question could be raised as to why such extensive work is necessary, given how recently similar work was done on the structure, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) describes it as routine.

The care, custody and control of both the Sagamore and the nearby Bourne bridges, as well as the Cape Cod Canal, are the responsibility of the USACE. see BRIDGES page 6

In an e-mailed response to the Enterprise, a Falmouth, Mass.-based news source, Bryan Purtell, a spokesperson of the USACE’s New England District, said that the Army Corps “conducts thorough inspections of the bridges every two years.” Those inspections, he said, are in accordance with the requirements of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).