This is a list of crossings of the Cape Cod Canal from its east end in Cape Cod Bay to its west end in Buzzards Bay. The Cape Cod Canal, which opened in 1914, shortened the ocean route from New York City to Boston by 62mile.[1]
There are currently two automobile bridges and one railway bridge that cross the Cape Cod Canal, each of which opened in 1935. An earlier set of bridges, also two for automobiles and one for rail traffic, opened between 1911 and 1913. Construction of the Cape Cod Canal began in 1909; the canal initially opened in 1914 and was completed in 1916. Two earlier bridges (one automobile and one railroad) whose construction predated work on the canal and were built to span the Monument River (whose course was largely followed by the canal) are listed for completeness.
Entries in this list are ordered by location along the canal, from Cape Cod Bay to Buzzards Bay.
| Crossing | width=15% | Carries | Location | Built | Image | width=15% | Coordinates | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bgcolor=lightgrey | Sagamore Highway Bridge (former) | Sagamore | 1912–1913 | 41.7751°N -70.5332°W | [2] [3] [4] [5] | |||
| Sagamore Bridge | U.S. Route 6 | 41.7762°N -70.5434°W | [6] | |||||
| Bourne Bridge | Route 28 | Bourne | 42.8337°N -70.9068°W | [7] | ||||
| bgcolor=lightgrey | Highway bridge (former) | Old Bridge Road | 41.7459°N -70.5962°W | [8] [9] | ||||
| bgcolor=lightgrey | Railroad bridge (former) | Cape Cod Branch Railroad | 1848 | 41.7449°N -70.6034°W | ||||
| bgcolor=lightgrey | Bourne Highway Bridge (former) | Perry Avenue | 41.7448°N -70.6009°W | |||||
| Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge | Cape Main Line (current) | 41.742°N -70.6137°W | [10] | |||||
| bgcolor=lightgrey | Railroad bridge (former) | New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad | 41.7419°N -70.6138°W |
Due to gridlock during peak summer months, and growing traffic issues even off-season, constructing a third automobile bridge over the canal was a topic of discussion for many years.
Such a bridge was first proposed during the 1950s to connect the proposed Route 25 to U.S. Route 6 north of the canal. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts determined that due to overcapacity on the Sagamore Bridge, a third vehicular crossing would be necessary sometime after 1975. Another proposal, for the Southside Connector expressway, suggested twinning the Bourne Bridge as part of capacity improvements for the roadway.[11] A local farmer fought the state's effort to cross her land with Route 25 for 25 years, eventually winning that fight in 1982.[12]
The proposal for a third crossing was revived under the administration of Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick. Identifying itself as Project SPAN,[13] the effort floated two plans:
By September 2016, enthusiasm for a third road bridge had cooled and the state reported that it was considering two new bridges that would eventually replace the existing bridges.[18]