The Big Dig

The Big Dig is a project in Boston, Massachusetts that rerouted the main highway that cut through downtown Boston into a 3.5 mile tunnel and also included several other tunnels and bridges. The project began in 1991 and was completed in December of 2007. In 1985 when the project was still in the design stages it was estimated that the project would cost $2.8 billion. When the project was completed in 2007, it was estimated that the project cost a total of $22 billion. In addition to the staggering cost of the project there were many obstacles during the building process. The ground where the tunnel was to be dug was a landfill and there were remnants of house foundations. The tunnel also had to run under trail tracks, which was a huge obstacle. The project was also so large that couldn't be undertaken by just one contractor but it had divided among several different contractor. However, despite staggering costs and many hardships during construction it has had many positive impacts traffic. Before the Big Dig all of the traffic that was going to different locations traveled on the Central Artery but thanks to the Big Dig the traffic is now separated. It has also decreased travel time by 85.6%. However, there have also been many problems with the Big Dig. After completion there were several leaks found in the ceiling and walls. Bad materials were also used such as substandard concrete. Also in 2006 a piece of concrete ceiling panel fell killing the motorist below. Upon investigation it was found that the glue used to hold the ceiling panel was insufficient for long term bonding. While the Big Dig has been plagued with many hardships during both construction and completion, it has also had many positive impacts.