Bass River, Harwich bridge replacement projects to receive millions in funding

Asad Jung Cape Cod Times 

Published Feb. 11, 2022

The Bass River Bridge, which connects Yarmouth and Dennis, is a vital transportation link on the Cape and will soon be made safer.

The bridge, which carries significant summer traffic, is also “structurally deficient,” according to the Federal Highway Administration. 

That all may change following Gov. Charlie Baker's Feb. 3 announcement to use $3 billion in state and federal to rebuild bridges across the state.

Cape officials are excited.

"That's great news," said Jeffrey Colby, Department of Public Works director for the town of Yarmouth.

Baker's plan is made up of 146 bridge repair projects, including the Bass River plan, which also calls for improvements to a Main Street intersection in Yarmouth.

Plans are also in the works to replace the small bridge over the Herring River on Azalea Drive in Harwich.

46% of the Cape's bridges need repairs:Here's what we know about the conditions and plans

“There’s been a historic underinvestment in transportation infrastructure and the situation requires heightened attention in terms of the condition of all the bridges on the Cape that are in the (structurally deficient) category,” said Steven Tupper, transportation program manager at the Cape Cod Commission, in a November interview. 

State OKs $3.4 million to replace bridge over Herring River in Harwich

The Bass River bridge replacement and Main Street work is targeted to get $18.7 million from the plan. The Azalea Drive bridge project is scheduled to receive almost $3.5 million.

Both bridges will still be open to traffic during construction. 

Yarmouth's Colby said that since projects are becoming more and more expensive to fund, the federal money is quite welcome. The federal help will also allow the project to move more quickly than had it relied on state money alone.

COLUMN: Let's get to work on the Bass River Bridge

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has an aggressive schedule to begin construction, he said, potentially starting in October of 2023. 

The Bass River Bridge Replacement and Intersection Improvements Project recently had its 25% design public hearing, where officials heard from the public. The next step will be having a 75% public hearing in the early summer. 

What improvements will be made?

MassDOT will widen the bridge deck and create a shared-use path. The intersection at Main Street, specifically at North Main Street, and Old Main Street, is a “High Crash Location.” It will be made safer by improving things like traffic signals and turn lanes. 

The Azalea Bridge project, in a primarily residential area in Harwich, will replace the bridge, improving safety and drainage and providing new conduits for utilities.

Harwich DPW Director Lincoln Hooper said it is a benefit to the people of Harwich that the project will be funded without putting a burden on taxpayers. 

He said the project will go out to bid in August. 

"I think it’s certainly a step in the right direction in terms of seeing additional funding for the region,” said Tupper.  

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Massachusetts letting millions in tolls go uncollected since electronic tolling began

 

CHARLIE BAKER as manager?

Charlie appointed incompetents who can't do their jobs and the media gives CHARLIE a FREE RIDE just as it always has.

$122 MILLION!

– “Massachusetts letting millions in tolls go uncollected since electronic tolling began,” by Mike Beaudet, WCVB: “The billing system that has taken the tolls' place has let tens of millions of dollars in unpaid tolls go uncollected. In all, the unpaid tolls continue to add up, $122 million owed to Massachusetts and counting.”

BOSTON —

Toll booths became history in Massachusetts in 2016, and backups at the tolls disappeared with them.

The billing system that has taken the tolls' place has let tens of millions of dollars in unpaid tolls go uncollected. In all, the unpaid tolls continue to add up, $122 million owed to Massachusetts and counting.

Some of the unpaid tolls haven't been paid in three years or more according to records obtained by 5 Investigates.

The toll money would go back to help Massachusetts highways and bridges.

"That's too bad because they could use that money to improve the roads and everything which are really bad here in Massachusetts," said Stephanie Koplin-Baucum of Westwood, interviewed as she stopped at a gas station in Newton.

The records show that 41% of unpaid tolls are from drivers from out of state, totaling $51.1 million.

The team at 5 Investigates tried to obtain a list of the biggest offenders. The state would not release the names because of privacy concerns. They did provide the amounts owed.

"I don't know how they get away with not paying. Doesn't Massachusetts do something?" Koplin-Baucum said.

Most of the top 100 offenders are from Massachusetts. The biggest scofflaw owes nearly $90,000 in tolls, followed by bills for $50,000 and $22,000.

The official term for unpaid tolls is "leakage."

"There are a lot of companies that do owe us quite a bit of money and we'll be chasing it," said Steve Collins, MassDOT's assistant highway administrator for tolls.

Collins said Massachusetts is receiving more money than it expected to get, and that before the pandemic hit, the state was meeting its goal to collect as much toll revenue as it did before electronic tolling.

"No one can deny that that's a lot of money and we want we obviously want to. We want to capture it in whatever way we can," Collins said.

MassDOT’s Steve Collins said the state has hired debt collectors to go after unpaid tolls.

To capture the cash, the state can stop people with unpaid tolls from registering their cars and shares information with New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island and New York to stop violators from registering their vehicles there.

Massachusetts is also hiring debt collectors to go after the money. We discovered MassDOT has been talking about hiring a debt collector for more than two years.

"Why has it taken so long to put a debt collector in place?" 5 Investigates' Mike Beaudet asked.

"It was the process," Collins said. "The whole contracting process going out to bid, reviewing all of the proposals."

It's a process that continues on multiple fronts as the unpaid tolls add up.

"We plan to continue to chase it and come up with any of the new ideas that we possibly can until the day we die," Collins said.

MassDOT said three debt collector vendors have finally been hired and that work started earlier this month in an attempt to recoup the millions in unpaid tolls.

https://www.wcvb.com/.../5-investigates.../38324380...

WCVB.COM

Mass. letting millions in tolls go uncollected since electronic tolling began

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