Canal supports maritime trade

Canal supports maritime trade

October 04, 2014

By RON CAHOON

Recent letter writers feel we should fill in the Cape Cod Canal to alleviate the Cape's vehicle traffic. While we are at it, let's level the golf courses near Route 6 so we can widen the highway to five lanes in both directions and have double-lane on- and off-ramps. And to make room for all the extra cars, let's fill in a few harbors.

Now back to reality. Closing off the Cape Cod Canal will severely disrupt maritime trade. On any given day an average of 15 large commercial vessels travels through the canal in either direction. That's around 5,500 vessels per year that would have to navigate around the Outer Cape every year. Some of these vessels have 40- to 50-foot drafts when full. Just imagine the headlines that would create over the years!

Second, closing the canal would severely hamper the pleasure boat industry. I know some people think pleasure boaters are just rich indulging people, but boaters come from all walks of life. And these people with boats of all sizes help keep thousands of people employed in Southeastern, Massachusetts through the marine industry.

And last, the fishing industry would also be severely threatened, from the bass fishermen on the canal to the commercial fishing boats, not to mention the migration of the fish through the canal.

So let's fill in the canal, create countless navigational hazards and huge unemployment, and give fishermen more bad news that threatens their existence.

On a related matter, why has there been nothing done about the Bourne Rotary? What is it going to take? This is 30 years overdue. Ever try to get off the Cape using Route 28 North toward the Bourne Bridge between 4 and 6 p.m. in the off-season, let alone summer? Year-round milelong backups on 28 North and Sagamore Road with bottlenecks on side roads leading to the rotary.

I thought when U.S. Rep. William Keating got elected, he would shed some light on this problem and other traffic issues in our area in Washington. But I guess he is too busy. I did not vote for him and, come November, I hope we elect someone who will pay attention to this area.

Redoing the Bourne Rotary would take much less legal wrangling with none of the eminent domain problems the Sagamore Rotary had. Now that IHOP is closing, this would be a good time for the state to buy that land.

I also would like to think the state police would be willing to give up a portion of their 3- acre front lawn. Sounds pretty simple to me as far as these type of projects go, but surely easier said than done.

But something big needs to be done to handle the overall traffic problems that besiege the surrounding canal area. Unfortunately, this would be a mega-project no matter how you slice it.

Out of all the suggestions, I go with sistering the existing bridges and making three lanes in both directions. It's the least expensive plan. And our beloved Silver Arches would be preserved.

However, existing infrastructure will need miles of work. A lot of this could be done simply by using a portion of the median strips and a little of the area along the outside edges of the highway. This would allow for three lanes for the 5 or 10 miles leading up to the Sagamore and Bourne bridges in both directions.

Part of this plan would be to develop roads connecting Route 6 with Route 28 North and a road between Route 25 in Wareham to Route 3 to disperse and alleviate traffic.

Let's hope this plan or another good plan will be implemented someday in the near future. But with government bureaucracy running amok, I will properly not live long enough to see this happen.

Ron Cahoon lives in Falmouth.
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Sounds about right.
Silver Arches!