Bourne Bridge Maintenance Work Complete, Restrictions Lifted

BOURNE, MA — Bourne Bridge maintenance work, a project that caused traffic on Cape Cod and birthed inside jokes from local police departments, is completed as of Friday.

There is one small project for the US Army Corps of Engineers to complete overnight this weekend, but traffic restrictions have been lifted as of Friday morning.

"All bridge travel lanes and the sidewalk are now open and all local restrictions on Cotuit Rd/Maple Street and the closure of Veterans Way have been lifted," Bourne police said. "USACE will be completing some lane striping at night over the weekend."

Since mid-September, vehicle travel over the bridge was reduced from two lanes in each direction to a single 12-foot-wide lane in each direction as roadway and bridge structural repairs were conducted, officials said.

Lane restrictions were in place 24 hours a day until Friday.

So what was the construction work for?

"This maintenance work is critical to maintaining the structural integrity of the Bourne Bridge, a vital component to the transportation system of Cape Cod, the Islands and southeastern Massachusetts," an Army Corps of Engineers news release said.

"Work will include concrete and pavement repairs on the bridge roadway, repair of deteriorated steel supports, maintenance of bridge joints, and repairs to the concrete abutment structures. Work crews will also perform maintenance work on the bridge lighting and drainage systems during this timeframe."