Senators Urge Colleagues To Keep Bridge Replacement Funds In Appropriations Bill
In a letter last week, US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts urged their colleagues to ensure that the final Fiscal Year 2024 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill includes $350 million for the replacement of the Cape Cod Canal bridges.
The letter, dated February 6, was addressed to Patty Murray (D-WA), interim chairwoman of the US Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, and ranking member John Kennedy (R-LA) as both the Senate and the House of Representatives work to reconcile their respective appropriations bills.
“As the Senate Appropriations Committee finalizes the Fiscal Year 2024 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill, we respectfully urge you to preserve the $350 million in federal funding for the Cape Cod Canal Bridges,” the letter states.
The appropriations bill passed by the subcommittee in July 2023 included $350 million toward a total commitment of $600 million for the project alignment with the budget request from President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
“The Bourne and Sagamore Bridges are not just vital arteries for the Cape Cod economy and surrounding communities, they are also essential routes for general transportation, tourism, and emergency evacuations,” Senators Warren and Markey wrote. “Given the bridges’ vital positions as passageways to the rest of the world, and an integral part of the economy, securing the $350 million in the FY24 Appropriations bill to replace them is essential.”
The work of Senators Warren, Markey and other elected officials in the commonwealth has helped bolster the project in Washington. Most recently, the senators and Representative William R. Keating (D-9th District) announced in December 2023 that the US Department of Transportation had awarded the Massachusetts Department of Transportation a $372 million grant for the Cape Cod bridges replacement under the Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant Program’s National Infrastructure Project Assistance program, or MEGA, which was the first significant federal funding commitment for the project.
Prior to that grant announcement, in September 2023, Senators Warren and Markey and Rep. Keating sent a letter of support to Pete Buttigieg, secretary of the US Department of Transportation, supporting Massachusetts’ MEGA application and additional funding sought through the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America Program.
Letters were also sent in July 2023 from Sen. Warren’s office to 36 Cape Cod community stakeholders, including elected officials, town officials, tribal leaders and community organizations seeking input on “how the aging Bourne and Sagamore bridges are impacting communities, businesses, and residents on and around Cape Cod.” The input provided from stakeholders, the senators wrote in last week’s joint letter, “highlighted the impact of current bridge repair closures, and future impacts if the bridges are not replaced.”
“The economic vitality and quality of life for Cape Cod’s residents, workers, and visitors are deeply reliant on the replacement of these bridges,” the letter concluded. “We therefore urge the Senate Appropriations Committee to maintain the crucial $350 million allocation for the Cape Cod Bridges project in the final FY24 Energy and Water Appropriations bill. This decisive action will ensure both ongoing success and last economic security for the Cape Cod community.”