Sagamore Bridge

Infobox Bridge
bridge_name=Sagamore Bridge


caption=Cape Cod Canal - Sagamore Bridge
official_name=
carries=
crosses=Cape Cod Canal
locale=Sagamore, Massachusetts
maint=United States Army Corps of Engineers
id=
design=arch bridge with suspended deck
mainspan=616 ft (188 m)
length=1,408 ft (429 m)
width=40 ft (12 m)
height=
load=
clearance=
below=135 ft (41 m)
traffic=
begin=1933
complete=
open=June 22, 1935
closed=
toll=
map_cue=
map_

map_text=
map_width=
coordinates= coord|41|46|34.81|N|70|32|36.65|W|display=inline,title
lat=
long=

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.

Most traffic approaching from the north follows Route 3, which ends at US 6, just north of the bridge, and provides freeway connections from Boston and Interstate 93.

History

The bridge, along with its sibling, the Bourne Bridge, was constructed beginning in 1933 by the Public Works Administration for the United States Army Corps of Engineers, which operates both the bridges and the canal. Both bridges carry four lanes of traffic over a 616-foot (188 m) main span, with a 135-foot (41 m) ship clearance, and opened on June 22, 1935. The design of the Sagamore and Bourne bridges was later copied in miniature for the John Greenleaf Whittier bridge that connects Interstate 95 from Newburyport to Amesbury on Massachusetts' North Shore.

The bridge replaces an earlier, 1912 bridge, which was built as a drawbridge before the canal was widened. The original bridge approaches are still visible to the north of the modern bridge, though both approaches are in low-traffic residential areas.

In 2004, construction began to replace the rotary that connects US 6 and Route 3 to the bridge with a trumpet interchange (known as the "Sagamore Flyover"). The project was previously delayed for many years owing to controversy over the disruption of homes and businesses in the area. The project finally commenced because of the severe gridlock at the rotary, which was built to accommodate a much smaller resident and visitor population, as well as many traffic accidents over the years. The flyover was completed in late 2006.

ee also

* Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge
* Bourne Bridge

External links

* [http://www.bostonroads.com/crossings/sagamore/ Steve Anderson's BostonRoads.com: Sagamore Bridge (US 6)]
* [http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/recreati/ccc/education/canalbridges.htm Cape Cod Canal Bridges]
* [http://www.capecodonline.com/special/360_view/sagamore/ Sagamore Rotary flyover project]
*

Crossings navbox
structure = Crossings
place = Cape Cod Canal
bridge = Sagamore Bridge
bridge signs =
upstream = Cape Cod Bay
upstream signs =
downstream = Bourne Bridge
downstream signs =