Bridge Street (Rt. 107) Reconstruction

On Tuesday, the 29th of July, The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) held a virtual public hearing on the plan for the reconstruction of Bridge Street (Route 107) from just west of the Washington Street intersection to Flint Street. MassDOT expects the project to be funded with 80% federal funding and 20% state funding. 

A map of Bridge Street with the project area highlighted in red.

A reconstruction is desperately needed. Bridge Street sees frequent flooding, significant consistent potholes, and poses many safety issues. Yet I have some significant concerns about the project at this stage. There are still many unknowns as the project team coordinates with neighborhoods and City officials.

Deliberately multimodal, the design excels at providing safer travel routes for cyclists and pedestrians. Bridge Street, from Washington Street to Flint Street, is currently difficult to navigate as a pedestrian or cyclist. With crosswalks in inconvenient locations, pedestrians frequently risk crossing lanes of traffic. The planned reconstruction would alleviate some of these issues, increasing safety for pedestrians by creating more practical crossings and managing traffic speeds (without hindering traffic flow).

Roundabouts are proven to decrease the risk of serious collisions while improving traffic flow (according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Highway Loss Data Institute). Placing a roundabout by the F.W. Webb building, at the ramps to and from North Street, will undoubtedly aid keeping vehicle traffic moving while theoretically making it easier for pedestrians to cross busy intersections.

I was pleased to hear the MassDOT project leaders emphasize the need for City and neighborhood engagement. Neighbors who traverse and live along the Bridge Street corridor are the most valuable source of information on what is most needed and will be the most beneficial. City officials must be attentive to this and ensure MassDOT follows through on soliciting and engaging neighborhood input.

There are, however, at least four key problems with this reconstruction project.

First, the scope of the project is shortsighted and bureaucratically limited. The project seems to be taken in isolation from the upcoming North Street Bridge project. Within the next decade, Salem will need to have the North Street Bridge (part of State Route 114) rebuilt. This project can and must be looked at while considering Bridge Street. Thus far, there have been few public discussions of how these two projects intersect. As of this writing, the North Street Bridge project is “in the preliminary design phase” (per the MassDOT project database). Construction along Bridge Street near the MBTA intersection and along the ramps up to North Street will heavily restrict possible redesigns to the bridge, a limitation I’m not ready to embrace.

A second problem is the proposed roundabouts, despite what positives were stated previously, will restrict the upcoming North Street Bridge project. Having just completed this project, it is extremely unlikely that MassDOT will entertain the idea of changing recently reconstructed elements of Bridge Street. We will be “locked in.” This is just one specific reason the North Street Bridge reconstruction plans must be considered alongside Bridge Street. The two separate project teams must be in active communication with the public.

A third problem is that the present design completely ignores the railway. Given the rail will remain in place, the lack of integration is puzzling. Taking account of the railway specifically would allow for more possibilities if the rail were to regain functionality. However, MassDOT seems entirely resistant to entertaining this idea claiming it is “not in the scope of the project,” a lazy non-answer to a sincere question. 

A fourth problem is that flooding remains a serious issue in this area of Bridge Street, particularly from the ramps to and from North Street down to the intersection of Lynn/River Street. The proposed project does very little to resolve flooding in any significant way. MassDOT seems to operate with a “we can’t control the weather” type of attitude. This is a principal concern for residents MassDOT has almost completely overlooked.

Currently, this project has deep flaws along with its few strengths. Some of the infrastructure improvements are absolutely essential while other elements leave much to be desired. This project must proceed in some form but the proposed design needs significant changes. The project rests in the hands of MassDOT with limited say from Salem officials. We must lean on MassDOT to make necessary changes to their plans in order to prevent significant long-term problems. 

Relevant Information:

1. More About the 29 July 2025 MassDOT Public Hearing: https://www.mass.gov/event/salem-reconstruction-of-bridge-street-route-107-from-flint-street-to-150-feet-west-of-washington-street-07-29-2025

2. Handout from the 29 July 2025 Virtual Public Hearing: https://www.mass.gov/doc/massdot-hearing-handout-salem-72925/download

3. Flier from the 29 July 2025 Virtual Public Hearing: https://www.mass.gov/doc/massdot-hearing-flyer-salem-72925/download

4. MassDOT Bridge Street (Rt. 107) Project File (#612990): https://hwy.massdot.state.ma.us/ProjectInfo/Main.asp?ACTION=ViewProject&PROJECT_NO=612990

5. MassDOT North Street Bridge (ST 114) Project File (#605332): https://hwy.massdot.state.ma.us/ProjectInfo/Main.asp?ACTION=ViewProject&PROJECT_NO=605332

6. More Information about Roundabouts: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/what-are-roundabouts

7. Recording of the Meeting (MassDOT Website): https://www.mass.gov/event/salem-bridge-street-route-107-reconstruction-11-07-2024  

8. Recording of the Meeting (Vimeo): https://vimeo.com/1031315641?fl=pl&fe=vl