Next big highway project?

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PaulC

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Now that the big dig is virtually finished, what will be the next major highway project in the greater Boston area or even Massachusetts. Not counting lane additions(rt128 and rt3) or interchanges that are already planned(93/95/128 http://www.9395info.com/)
 
Does the Boston area really need another new highway?

Maybe submerge Storrow Dr.

But other than that, fix what we have and spend the rest on public transit.
 
In a perfect world, the Tobin Bridge would be torn down and put in a tunnel. It would be Big Dig II. Imagine how much more efficient it would be than the first project now that everyone knows exactly who to call to get their fair share of the graft!
 
Reconstruction of the Longfellow Bridge will be our next major highway project, followed by Storrow.
 
underground said:
In a perfect world, the Tobin Bridge would be torn down and put in a tunnel. It would be Big Dig II. Imagine how much more efficient it would be than the first project now that everyone knows exactly who to call to get their fair share of the graft!
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I'm not saying I disagree.

I'm just curious as to what problem would that solve?
 
I'd love to someday see the Tobin replaced with something that allows bicycle and pedestrian access between Charlestown and Chelsea (which existed on the old drawbridge that the Tobin itself replaced).
 
topic

I'd really like to see this thread stay on highways. There's a lot of infrastructure and mass transit that needs to be done but that can be a separate discussion.


My choice would be a new tunnel to the airport from the north. I'm not sure of the configuration but I would like to see it funnel airport traffic from rt93 and rt1. This would keep airport traffic from the north out of the Callahan and Sumner tunnels just as the big dig funnels traffic to and from the south into the Ted Williams tunnel. It could also connect rt93 south with rt1 north which I believe has not been replaced.

I know it would take a lot to get East Boston on board but one thing that may help is a promise to remove the elevated portions of rt1a after the tolls. This was talked about with the big dig but did not happen.
 
statler said:
underground said:
In a perfect world, the Tobin Bridge would be torn down and put in a tunnel. It would be Big Dig II. Imagine how much more efficient it would be than the first project now that everyone knows exactly who to call to get their fair share of the graft!
Click to expand...
I'm not saying I disagree.

I'm just curious as to what problem would that solve?
Click to expand...

For one thing, the Chelsea Yacht Club wouldn't have to spend half their weekends cleaning up the debris that's falling from it. But seriously, it wouldn't solve anything that's a major/pressing problem other than that it's just noisy, looks heinous, and leaves a bit of a dead spot between the ship yard (one of the criminally underused parts of town) and the rest of Charlestown.
 
Any replacement for the Tobin needs to have space for either BRT or light rail. Let's not make the same mistake twice.
 
No.

No more tunnels.

None.

Zero.

Bridges are the only alternative.
 
I disagree; the Storrow tunnels should be expanded and extended, so that it is possible to walk undisturbed from the Public Garden to the Esplanade.
 
I'm hoping for a bridge/tunnel(mostly bridge, it will be more feasible) connecting Charlestown with East Boston. I also hope the Charlestown Bridge will be replace by a state of the art bridge since it is also in danger of collapse. I think the Tobin is alright though making this bridge into a suspension bridge will be amazing since I believe it spans longer than the Golden Gate Bridge.
 
Re: topic

PaulC said:
My choice would be a new tunnel to the airport from the north.
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Not sure what this means -- are you suggesting depressing Route 1A from Revere to the Sumner/Callahan? I agree that something must be done to address the traffic issues on this stretch of road all the way up to Danvers, but I don't know that tunneling will do much to help. Removing all the traffic circles and stoplights is necessary, but there are less costly and invasive ways to achieve this goal.

PaulC said:
I know it would take a lot to get East Boston on board but one thing that may help is a promise to remove the elevated portions of rt1a after the tolls. This was talked about with the big dig but did not happen.
Click to expand...

Many of us in East Boston would love to see the ramps go away, as they divide Day Square from the Heights and are an eyesore. That said, there was never serious talk (or any money) to replace these ramps, as Route 1A is a state highway, not covered by Federal funds.

Honestly, our next big project is maintaining the shoddy workmanship and sub-par materials used in the Big Dig. Fish out your checkbooks, everyone.
 
DarkFenX said:
I think the Tobin is alright though making this bridge into a suspension bridge will be amazing since I believe it spans longer than the Golden Gate Bridge.
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Um.. what? This isn't right by a long shot.
 
eh just ignore me, I remember reading somewhere about the Tobin Bridge or some other bridge being longer than another more known bridge. I don't remember where though.
 
Whatever happened to the rt 3 south of boston widening? I thought it was approved to add 1 lane in each direction. I stumbled upon this website while googling
http://www.bostonroads.com/roads/MA-3/

I would like to the Braintree split redone. I thought some private companies(ie Flatley) were willing to pay for some of this.
 
Traffic along I-93 is really bad. Perhaps a new 8 lane highway up along the Southwest Corridor Orange Line would alive the traffic. :D
 
rt 1a

Beton Brut said:
Not sure what this means -- are you suggesting depressing Route 1A from Revere to the Sumner/Callahan? I agree that something must be done to address the traffic issues on this stretch of road all the way up to Danvers, but I don't know that tunneling will do much to help. Removing all the traffic circles and stoplights is necessary, but there are less costly and invasive ways to achieve this goal.



Many of us in East Boston would love to see the ramps go away, as they divide Day Square from the Heights and are an eyesore. That said, there was never serious talk (or any money) to replace these ramps, as Route 1A is a state highway, not covered by Federal funds.

quote]

There was some talk of this early in the big dig process. I think it was that elevated roadway just after the toll.
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I remember the discussion (I was a senior in high school, but attended many of the meetings that the CAT project held at the Umana School). I believe Joe DeNucci was one of the proponents but there were never funds to make it happen.
 
The Tobin Bridge could use some decorative lighting. It is one of the longest bridges of its kind (like the one in Fall River which is even longer). I think a good idea would be to toll MA borders on all highways on the incoming side (NY, CT, RI, VT, & NH). Integrate all transportation agencies into one (MBTA, Mass Pike, Mass Highway, MassPort, etc.). It would be a streamlined agency with reduced administrative costs that would, in the long run, be more efficient. The only other highway transportation enhancements I could see is widening route 3 from two lanes to three lanes from Hingham to Cape Cod (or at least to Plymouth) and eliminating the lights on route 2 through the Acton - Lincoln stretch.
 
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