I've been reasonably supportive of the Big Dig here in Boston. Not that I haven't griped over the past decade (or two) from time to time, but I really believed that all the inconvenience would ultimately be outweighed by the improvement to traffic patterns and congestion. And, in the past year or so, it seems to me that's been the way it has turned out: a big improvement. For example, my commute from Brighton to East Boston every evening, including Storrow Drive, Leverett Circle, part of the Tip O'Neill Tunnel, and the Callahan Tunnel, takes me an average of 8-12 minutes, which is outstanding.
Those leaks in the tunnel? Ridiculous and unacceptable, of course, but I've preferred to believe that the folks responsible will do the right thing and, kajillions of dollars later, it will somehow be repaired.
But last night I heard that a hunk of ceiling fell in one of the tunnels. This morning I found out that someone died as a direct result. And this appears to have absolutely nothing to do with the leaks. Who answers for this? And how do we explain this to the family of a dead woman or her injured spouse?
Leaks may be expected in an underground tunnel (though probably not to the extent that they've occurred here). Falling hunks of cement, however? I'll be fascinated to hear how the contractors try to weasel their way out of this one.
Posted by cynical at July 11, 2006 09:41 AMI just read about that. It's crazy. Can you imagine all the time and money that's going to go into checking the damn thing now?
Posted by: Chris on July 11, 2006 02:43 PMThat's terrible. Seattle has it's own money sucking transportation terror called The Viaduct....as far as I know, no part has fallen and killed someone yet, but lots of folks think that that's only a matter of time or earthquake.
Posted by: Karan on July 11, 2006 06:02 PMWe have none of those problems in Canada. I never worry about the safety of my sled dogs when going to work. Even our igloos don't collapse
Posted by: shanman on July 11, 2006 11:15 PMAh, but do you get air bubbles in the ice blocks that make up your igloos, Shanman? And when that happens, how do you know whether it is a design flaw or a manufacturing error? How much will it cost to replace the defective blocks? Must the entire igloo be razed and rebuilt, or can just the defective blocks be removed and replaced with blocks having no known flaws? Whom do you fire so that the public will believe important changes are being made? Which of your friends do you hire to oversee the repairs and to help rebuild the public trust in your igloo-centric infrastructure?
And if you don't worry about your sled dogs, who will?
Posted by: cynical on July 11, 2006 11:28 PMYou clearly don't love America.
Posted by: shelley (not-so-cynical) on July 13, 2006 12:58 AMYeah...I've got family in Marblehead that used to live outside of Boston. Stuff goes wrong. The city blames everyone but itself. Interesting.
Posted by: wordgirl on July 14, 2006 02:13 AMhey, it gave your governor a wonderful opportunity to grandstand and show off that VERY impressive "fingers crossed" soundbite...
Posted by: meg on July 15, 2006 12:28 AMWhat a politician grandstand?
Posted by: sally on July 15, 2006 05:42 PMwell, I meant it as a verb...as in "toot his horn" and make a big To-Do about it (well himself, rather ir or than any particular issue at hand).
Posted by: meg on July 18, 2006 01:39 PMMeg, I got what you meant and I ask "what a politician grandstand...". I mean, what are the chances? ;-)
Posted by: sally on July 20, 2006 11:26 PMoh, missed the sarcasm (me!)...sorry. I also added an "is" that you didnt put there...huh? doh. idiot.
Posted by: meg on July 21, 2006 03:11 PM"what? a politician grandstand?" got it.
Posted by: meg on July 21, 2006 03:11 PMSorry, I don't pay enough attention punctuation until AFTER I post a comment...
Posted by: sally on July 21, 2006 05:53 PM