BackBay

59°

Current Weather

Today
59°

Mostly cloudy. Isolated showers and thunderstorms...then scattered showers with isolated thunderstorms. Patchy fog. Some thunderstorms may produce gusty winds...small hail and heavy rainfall. Highs in the upper 70s. South winds around 5 mph...becoming east. Chance of rain 50 percent.

Thu

79°

60°

Fri

69°

48°

Sat

66°

49°

Sun

65°

49°

Mon

68°

53°

Tue

70°

--°

Local every day in
Back Bay, MA
Back Bay, MA Back Bay, MA
- South End
- Beacon Hill
- Charlestown
- Jamaica Plain
- Somerville
- Brookline
- Malden
- Belmont
- See more

Business

Big Dig Concrete Failing 20 Years Earlier Than Expected

The latest fiasco to surface out of the $14 billion project that put the Central Artery beneath Boston is the contractor's use of concrete better suited for Southern climes instead of durable asphalt capable of handing New England weather.

By Chris Helms
Email the author
June 8, 2012

2 Comments

‹ Back to Article

new

Embed | Share

File photo of the the Zakim bridge. The latest Big Dig fiasco involves failure of concrete on the ramps to the bridge from the O'Neill Tunnel.

Photos (1)

Photos

File photo of the the Zakim bridge. The latest Big Dig fiasco involves failure of concrete on the ramps to the bridge from the O'Neill Tunnel.

Credit Kasey Hariman

Upload Photos and Videos

The Big Dig isn't resting on its laurels as poster child for mismanaged major construction projects.

The Boston Globe reports that pavement going from the O'Neill Tunnel to the Zakim Bridge is failing much sooner than expected. Twenty years sooner.

It's down to the decision by Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff to use concrete when asphalt is better suited to New England weather. The first round of repairs is expected to cost $1 million and force traffic-clogging lane closures.

The $14 billion Big Dig put the Central Artery beneath Boston. It has been plagued with problems, including a tunnel collapse that killed Jamaica Plain's Milena Del Valle.

Back Bay residents, what do you think?

Read the whole story at BostonGlobe.com (subscription required for viewing full article.)

Related Topics: Big Dig