The biggest missed opportunity of the Big Dig (imo) is that a North/South rail link wasn't a part - especially since it would take the exact same route. Great podcast. It makes me nostalgic for the days when we could actually accomplish things.
Thanks to Ian's podcast, I looked up another project that personally impacted me: the 146 Interchange Project which also led to demolition of a neighborhood in Worcester. Fred Salvucci was also involved in that project.
This is every transportation project. Advocates will show up at the beginning in droves to get something done, then abandon ship when the reality of constructing it begins to create controversy. We either need more commitment for support at construction phase from advocates or decide to not do transformative projects.
Ian is incorrect about I-95 going through Washington DC. It was stopped by community groups and redirected around the Capital Beltway through Virginia and Maryland.
The right of way was preserved initially the Big Dig included N-S connection but it was cut. There are plans in place to do it Transit Matters has a whole report on it
@@keiththoma2559 To use the slurry wall extension space would mean a 6 degree reverse curve for starters. have seen many plans drawn up over decades. Transit matters is Roxburycentric and threw Lynn under (and on to) the bus.
I have to say I knew a lot less about the big dig as a new Englander born in the mid 80's than I thought I did. There are decades and layers i had no idea about. Loving it so far.
Going hand in hand with the big dig was the relocation of the Orange line from the raised tracks to the Southeast corridor. This had a huge positive impact on Washington St and JP. I would argue the raised Orange Line had as much of a negative effect on the city as the raised Central Artery.
Except all the homes and businesses that were taken in the creation of the SW corridor. Still better than the highway that was originally planned for the corridor.
Build circumferential FRA spec. electrified heavy railways in the RT.128 and the inner belt corridor, then take the bike paths back for the use they were originally laid out for.
Lesson learned here is that the Big Dig should have never happened. Now us as long time time natives in the Baystate are still fitting the bill to pay back the corrupt $3.81 billion. Traffic has worsened, not improved and there were loads of payouts under the table between the engineers and Mumbles. My dad worked in construction and remembered all the illegal stuff that happened behind the scenes at the Big Dig. He was there...."Hey, here's $5k take your kid to Disney World"
I think it’s more fair to say it’s baked in to the process. Our theory is that bidding projects makes them cheaper, but that adversarial framework means that the inevitable adjustments in construction are change orders that are extremely expensive. We are only now beginning to start other types of project delivery for work that is complex, large and long schedules.
