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Cambridge Harbor Site Transportation Technical Consultation - Cambridge, MD

Image of the Dorchester Women's Mural located in Downtown Cambridge, MD. The mural features a dozen women from the past and present who have made a difference in Dorchester County and far beyond.

U.S. DOT Volpe Center

Total Project Budget: $48,500 (~350 Volpe staff hours split between two employees plus travel for one site visit)
Project Timeline: November 2023 – September 2024
Project Partners: National Park Service Chesapeake Gateways, U.S. DOT Volpe Center, Cambridge Waterfront Development, Inc. (CWDI), City of Cambridge, Dorchester County
Project Deliverables: 1) Scope of Work to prepare for the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan (pdf icon Cambridge Harbor Multimodal Scope of Work); and 2) Funding Opportunities Memorandum (pdf icon Funding Opportunities Memorandum) to assist in finding sources that could fund the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan

Image of the future waterfront development site.

U.S. DOT Volpe Center

Project Request and Purpose

There are plans to redevelop Cambridge Harbor, an approximately 30-acre site along the Choptank River in Maryland's Eastern Shore region. National Park Service (NPS) Chesapeake Gateways (CHBA) partnered with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Volpe Center (Volpe) to provide technical assistance to support the Cambridge Waterfront Development, Inc. (CWDI) to develop a scope of work for a Multimodal Connectivity Plan for the Cambridge Harbor Site.

Project Purpose: To provide CWDI and local stakeholders with transportation technical assistance to study multimodal access to, from, and along this waterfront site and enhance options for access by residents and visitors. The project focused on multimodal connections, including identifying potential funding sources for expanding multimodality, and preparing CWDI and partners for the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan that could augment the City’s Comprehensive Plan that is currently in development.

Image of two people walking along a boardwalk trail on the Cambridge waterfront.

U.S. DOT Volpe Center

Project Background


The Cambridge Harbor waterfront redevelopment project is currently in Phase 1 of development and is expected to be completed by 2028. The developer, CWDI, is a private nonprofit development corporation led by a volunteer board of representatives appointed individually by the City of Cambridge, Dorchester County, the State of Maryland, and the CWDI team.

The Cambridge Harbor site is situated on the southern bank of the Choptank River completely within the city limits of Cambridge. It is bounded by U.S. Highway 50 to the east and Historic Downtown Cambridge to the west. The Cambridge Harbor site was home to the former Dorchester Regional Hospital, which occupied most of the land for over 100 years. This hospital was relocated approximately a mile away to a predominantly retail area along U.S. 50, and the old hospital building was demolished in the early 2020s, setting the stage for redevelopment at this waterfront location. Given the site’s proximity to all the City of Cambridge has to offer, there is a strong need to consider the transportation planning aspects in addition to the redevelopment plans.

Project Activities

The project team conducted a preliminary multimodal connectivity and funding analysis to prepare CWDI and partners for the development of a Multimodal Connectivity Plan that could augment the City’s Comprehensive Plan, which included:

  • Attended a site visit to the Cambridge Harbor site and critical destinations in the greater Dorchester County region to evaluate existing conditions of its transportation network, as well as to facilitate an in-person project partner engagement kickoff.

  • Drafted a Multimodal Connectivity Plan Scope of Work to move towards increasing connectivity between the Cambridge Harbor site and the City of Cambridge, as well as the greater region. This included an extensive analysis of existing transit conditions structured into four scales: the site level, the city level, the county/regional level, and the inter-regional/statewide level. Each poses unique transportation implications for Cambridge Harbor. The analysis also includes a summary of transportation issues and opportunities, as well as the specific tasks that would need to be included in the future scoping of multimodal transportation projects.

  • Developed a Funding Opportunities Memorandum to identify Federal, state, local, and nonprofit programs that could financially assist future multimodal transportation planning and construction efforts.

  • Engaged with project partners to review deliverables through calls and two stakeholder meetings.

The following key transportation challenges and opportunities for multimodal access were identified at the site:

Transportation Challenges

Transportation Opportunities

  • Limited multimodal connections, including bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, to the Cambridge Harbor site from the surrounding area.

  • Fixed-route transit services exist but offer relatively infrequent and indirect service to the site and other key destinations in the area.

  • Lack of regular ferry and water taxi services.

  • Safety concerns due to the conditions and inconsistency of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure at identified street intersections.

  • Update the City’s 2011 Comprehensive Plan to support transportation investments and better align with the Mid-Shore Regional Economic Development District’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy.

  • Engage with partners, notably the City of Cambridge and Dorchester County, to expand multi-use infrastructure to support active transportation modes, emphasizing separated shared-use pathways.

  • Coordinate with transit agency partners to ensure that Cambridge Harbor has adequate and efficient transit access and explore the feasibility of microtransit services to connect the site to local destinations.

  • Explore the feasibility of developing and implementing ferry and water taxi services to connect the development to local destinations along the Choptank.

  • Utilize NPS Chesapeake Gateways opportunities for support and resources to advance transportation opportunities.

Project Outcomes

The project addressed:

  • How to create an active and safe waterfront.

  • How to provide options to connect Cambridge Harbor to Cambridge’s downtown and various communities within the Cambridge area, and

  • How to scope and fund future multimodal transit projects.

The documents produced for this project are intended to serve as planning tools and may tie into the City of Cambridge’s ongoing Comprehensive Plan development process. The Multimodal Connectivity Plan Scope of Work can be used by CWDI to apply for grant funds to support the plan’s development or requests for proposals to develop it through a contractor. CWDI, the City of Cambridge, and additional project partners are now well-positioned to apply for the funding opportunities documented in the Funding Opportunities Memorandum and can utilize information from the scope of work. These documents provide context and will serve as guidance for ongoing efforts to provide multimodal connectivity options as the Cambridge Harbor site development continues.

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Chesapeake Bay

Last updated: July 23, 2025