City Hall Discussion - Redevelopment - Preservation - Relocation

Ron Newman said:
I don't see why a light-rail vehicle in the current Silver Line tunnel would be either better or worse than the current electrified bus of the same size in the same tunnel. And what would you do about the airport access?
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For one, it is loud, very bumpy and slow in those tunnels. It offers a rather uncomfortable ride. If anything, the tunnels should be converted for dual use, light rail around the South Boston Waterfront and for buses to the airport.
On a related note, while in Munich back in October, I noticed that buses run in the streetcar reservations, thus seperating them from general traffic (they also had countdown timers at most bus/streetcar stops, but that's another story).
 
wow.

Cityrecord:

the pamphlet text you posted is absolutely fascinating:

"Government Center has tried to respect the historic character of Old Boston while expressing the energy and growth of the New Boston."

"One of its aims is to restore this part of the city, which dates back to Colonial times, to the pedestrian scale it had originally."
 
If the Silver Line Waterfront tunnel were dual use for trolleys and buses, a trolley would move no faster than the slow bus in front of it.
 
Though I'm not sure why the bus would need to be slow -- run it at 35 mph just like the trolley behind it.
 
Ron Newman said:
Though I'm not sure why the bus would need to be slow -- run it at 35 mph just like the trolley behind it.
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A bus driver is much more likely to screw up and hit a wall, than a trolley driver. Mostly because a trolley cannot hit a wall.
 
Ron Newman said:
Though I'm not sure why the bus would need to be slow -- run it at 35 mph just like the trolley behind it.
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Not really - the bus actually runs closer to 25 in the tunnel.
 
SIlver Line and City Hall plaza

How much of City Hall Plaza can be built on? I was under the impression that most of it was built over subways, so you can't put anything heavier than sod on it. Maybe there's a map somewhere.

I guess I'm asking, will any new building have to have the same footprint as City Hall?

Can you keep City Hall, but expand on one side? Would that make anyone happy, or everyone pissed off?

Hey, if putting City Hall on the Seaport Waterfront means we get light-rail to the airport, I'm all for it. The Silver Line is excrutiatingly slow. Terrible.

Plus, if we get light rail on that part of the Silver Line, can we run it all the way to Dudley Square? I like that part of the Silver Line, but apparently no one else does.
 
The subways long predate City Hall Plaza, and there were plenty of small buildings here before the Plaza.
 
-There were, but the subways were always under the streets so there was nothing on top of them. To this day the only thing above the subways are roads and brick plaza.

- There will never be Light Rail to the Airport as long as Federal Highway standards forbid tracks on Interstate Highways.
 
Well, that sounds like a challenge for our Congressional delegation: legislate an exception so that Massachusetts can be the first state to lay tracks on an Interstate highway. If it's successful here, other states may want to follow.
 
Re: SIlver Line and City Hall plaza

IMAngry said:
How much of City Hall Plaza can be built on? I was under the impression that most of it was built over subways, so you can't put anything heavier than sod on it. Maybe there's a map somewhere.
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I just posted a c. 1899 map of the subway lines running under and around present day City Hall Plaza. If anyone wants a larger copy than is available on my blog, just email me--I'm not sure why the scan isn't coming out full size.

http://bostonhistory.typepad.com/notes_on_the_urban_condit/2006/12/what_is_under_c.html
 
I apologize for the poor quality of these two images showing the modern tunnels under construction, but I don't have a scanner, and so have to take a photo of the book in which these are found:

SSSubway.jpg


SSSUbwayBank.jpg


It does look to me as if the tunnels are very close to the surface; I'm not sure that the original grade in this area can be restored.
 
If this results in success, maybe the Silver Line will become rail after all. Also, you can build tall at City Hall Plaza. They're going to eventually build tall over South Station.
 
Perhapses if City Hall is sold and the plaza is redone then the developer/the T will reconfigure the subway station.
 
All they need are some serious supports in the tunnel where the new buildings are located. They can do this...it's not an issue.
 
vanshnookenraggen said:
-There were, but the subways were always under the streets so there was nothing on top of them. To this day the only thing above the subways are roads and brick plaza.

- There will never be Light Rail to the Airport as long as Federal Highway standards forbid tracks on Interstate Highways.
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Three words: State. Police. Lane.

The staties have no need for a dedicated lane on regular highways, why should they get one in the TWT? Convert it to Silver Line usage.
 
The lane is so they can drive 90 all of the time. Aren't they suppose to drive IN traffic to catch those criminal drivers?
 
I thought it was just how they got people like Matsuzaka in without having to wait in traffic
 
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