A piece of Cape Cod trail infrastructure is approaching a long-awaited milestone — the completion of a 182-foot steel bridge for cyclists and pedestrians.
Here's what to know
This fall, crews are expected to lift the bridge over Willow Street to create the first uninterrupted Cape Cod Rail Trail connection between Yarmouth and Barnstable, according to the Cape Cod Times.
"It's roughly scheduled for Oct. 15, weather and conditions permitting," Melissa Rogerson, project manager for Falmouth-based Lawrence-Lynch Corp., told the outlet. Lawrence-Lynch Corp. is the general contractor managing the project.
More background
With the bridge's completion, cyclists and pedestrians will be able to cross a busy four-lane roadway without dodging traffic, improving safety and making it easier to adopt transportation habits that support physical health, mental well-being, and cleaner air.
Residents have warned visitors that navigating Willow Street by bike or on foot is risky.
"I wouldn't walk down Willow Street nevermind ride a bike. Not a safe street," one Redditor cautioned. "I drive down to exit 6 just to avoid Willow St, if that's an indication," another said.
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The bridge was "more than a decade in the making" and is part of the Cape Cod Rail Trail Phase 3 extension, the Cape Cod Times noted. Preconstruction began in 2024, but a Department of Transportation project report shows plans to complete the four-mile connection from Old Town House Road in Yarmouth to Mary Dunn Road in Barnstable began in 2013.
Where can I learn more?
Similar infrastructure efforts help put the project in context. These articles cover advances in bridge repair, rail expansions, and major public works in Massachusetts and beyond.
• At MIT, engineers achieved a huge milestone in bridge repair with a cold-spray metal process.
• In Sardinia, Italy, officials began a $250 million hydrogen rail project aimed at reshaping city transportation.
• In Boston, leaders pushed a city-wide energy upgrade that taps the Charles River for heat.
• Across the Pacific Northwest, planners mapped a future high-speed rail route connecting major West Coast cities.
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