Southside Connector
Encyclopedia
The Southside Connector is a proposed expressway that would connect the Bourne Bridge to the Mid-Cape Highway near exit 2 on Cape Cod
. Originally, the expressway was planned to be routed north of the canal. Plans were changed when it was discovered that the Sagamore Bridge
was overcrowded and the nearby Bourne Bridge was under capacity. The route was shifted in the 1970s and the current plans of the route would go through the northern half of the Massachusetts Military Reservation
.
.
As early as 1962, the Massachusetts Department of Public Works conducted a study once questions on the plans were raised. One study concluded that the Sagamore Bridge
was over capacity while the Bourne Bridge was under capacity. From these studies, it was determined that the expressway would cross the canal near the Bourne Bridge. Expressway connections would connect to Route 6 and 28 on the south side of the canal near the Bourne Rotary. Another crossing that would carry three lanes would be built next to the bridge to facilitate this extra traffic.
Local leaders have expressed support for the project as long as it includes a third crossing of the canal, as the current two bridges are chronically over capacity.
In 2009, when the deck of the Sagamore Bridge
was reconstructed, there were increased calls to route traffic through the reservation as there was gridlock on both sides of the bridge and on the Scenic Highway. Although there was never talk about the connector, there is a possibility that there might be renewed talk about it as it repairs are scheduled to be restarted in 2010.
The only hitch to the construction of the expressway, should it ever be built, is a planned development called Canalside Commons which would sit right to the east of the Bourne Rotary. This development has been planned for well over 15 years, and the recent economic downturn has helped to delay the project a bit.
Cape Cod
Cape Cod, often referred to locally as simply the Cape, is a cape in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States...
. Originally, the expressway was planned to be routed north of the canal. Plans were changed when it was discovered that the Sagamore Bridge
Sagamore Bridge
The Sagamore Bridge in Sagamore, Massachusetts carries U.S. Route 6 across the Cape Cod Canal, connecting Cape Cod with the rest of Massachusetts, USA....
was overcrowded and the nearby Bourne Bridge was under capacity. The route was shifted in the 1970s and the current plans of the route would go through the northern half of the Massachusetts Military Reservation
Massachusetts Military Reservation
The Massachusetts Military Reservation, is a military reservation created by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the United States War Department in 1935. Governor James Curley signed the state bill to allocate and purchase land for a military facility, and establishing a formal commission to...
.
Beginnings
The Southside Connector was first proposed in the 1950s as an extension of Massachusetts Route 25. It was part of the ambitious Cape Cod Expressway, which eventually morphed into the Mid-Cape Highway. It was originally planned to be a safe alternative to Route 6 which, was on the northern side of the Cape Cod CanalCape Cod Canal
The Cape Cod Canal is an artificial waterway traversing the narrow neck of land that joins Cape Cod to mainland Massachusetts.Part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the canal is roughly 17.4 miles long and connects Cape Cod Bay in the north to Buzzards Bay in the south...
.
As early as 1962, the Massachusetts Department of Public Works conducted a study once questions on the plans were raised. One study concluded that the Sagamore Bridge
Sagamore Bridge
The Sagamore Bridge in Sagamore, Massachusetts carries U.S. Route 6 across the Cape Cod Canal, connecting Cape Cod with the rest of Massachusetts, USA....
was over capacity while the Bourne Bridge was under capacity. From these studies, it was determined that the expressway would cross the canal near the Bourne Bridge. Expressway connections would connect to Route 6 and 28 on the south side of the canal near the Bourne Rotary. Another crossing that would carry three lanes would be built next to the bridge to facilitate this extra traffic.
Rerouting
Between 1968 and 1977, studies concluded that the Southside Connector, as it was then known, would be routed along the south side of the canal. The route would begin at the Route 6 and 25 interchange at the canal, cross over the canal, turn east at the Bourne Rotary, which would be turned into an interchange, and go east until it reached the Mid-Cape Highway near exit 2. The total cost would be 35 million dollars.Cancellation
The project was put on hold the next decade, but never cancelled outright when concerns arose about the status of the groundwater aquifers which sat under the reservation. Interestingly, these same aquifers were already polluted from years of military training but the pollution wasn't discovered until about ten years later.Possible Revival
In recent years, increasing gridlock on both sides of the canal have brought renewed interest into the project. Although the project was projected to have costed thirty five million dollars in the 1970s, current estimates range from anywhere between 100 and 200 million dollars for construction.Local leaders have expressed support for the project as long as it includes a third crossing of the canal, as the current two bridges are chronically over capacity.
In 2009, when the deck of the Sagamore Bridge
Sagamore Bridge
The Sagamore Bridge in Sagamore, Massachusetts carries U.S. Route 6 across the Cape Cod Canal, connecting Cape Cod with the rest of Massachusetts, USA....
was reconstructed, there were increased calls to route traffic through the reservation as there was gridlock on both sides of the bridge and on the Scenic Highway. Although there was never talk about the connector, there is a possibility that there might be renewed talk about it as it repairs are scheduled to be restarted in 2010.
The only hitch to the construction of the expressway, should it ever be built, is a planned development called Canalside Commons which would sit right to the east of the Bourne Rotary. This development has been planned for well over 15 years, and the recent economic downturn has helped to delay the project a bit.