Big Dig Reopens To Drivers

Six months after a section of roof collapsed on a car killing a passenger and forced the closure of one of the most expensive transportation projects in the United States, the Central Arterial Tunnel, aka the Big Dig, has reopened.

The eastbound lanes of the Interstate 90 connector tunnel had been closed since the July 10 collapse, which killed Milena Del Valle, 38.

The tunnel was reopened after inspectors approved repairs in which workers installed a bracket-and-hanger system to support the concrete ceiling panels.

With the reopening, just one tunnel remains shut down: a high-occupancy-vehicle lane that is still undergoing repairs.

The original hanging system was inspected and it was determined that a very large percentage of the brackets were not installed correctly. The bonding between the hangers and the concrete roof was insufficient to carry the weight of the ceiling panels.

There had been questions as to whether the ceiling panels were even necessary and whether there was proper oversight in the inspection process or whether quality control was enforced. Those questions are still being investigated as the costs associated with the $14.7 billion project continue to accumulate.