Plans are moving forward for the new Sagamore Bridge — including how the bike path at the Cape Cod Canal can remain safe for cyclists and pedestrians during construction.
Bike path users may need to travel around the construction site for nearly a decade.
On Thursday, the state intends to unveil conceptual drawings of how the Canal Service Road (the bike path) will accommodate users while the work is underway.
A hearing is set for 6 to 8 p.m. at Bourne High School. It will include a presentation and time for public comments.
“Our priority is to create safe travel routes for everyone during construction,” Jonathan Gulliver, undersecretary of transportation and highway administrator at the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, said in a press release in June.
He said the department has listened to residents and local leaders “about their desire to create a route for bicyclists and pedestrians around a small portion of a work zone on the Canal Service Road.”
Construction of the $2.1 billion bridge is expected to start in roughly 18 months, in the winter of 2027-2028. The southbound span could open to traffic in 2033, and the northbound span a little more than three years later.
At the hearing, the Department of Transportation also plans to give a general update on the Sagamore Bridge project, including the bridge design, right-of-way issues, detours, and traffic management.
The department said staff will speak briefly about the Bourne Bridge, but the hearing will focus on the Sagamore. Replacement of the Bourne Bridge is not yet fully funded.
This fall, the Sagamore project will enter a new phase, when the state issues a Request for Proposals for contractors, likely in September. Contractors use the information to write their bids.
