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There were three options here: retrofitting the existing viaduct, replacing it, or building a tunnel. I was never really opposed to the tunnel. It was always the most elegant solution. But I would not have voted for it had I been a Seattle resident (which I'm not) due to worries that the city fathers and WSDOT would turn it into a Big Dig. Looks like my worries were well placed.
There were three options here: retrofitting the existing viaduct, replacing it, or building a tunnel. I was never really opposed to the tunnel. It was always the most elegant solution. But I would not have voted for it had I been a Seattle resident (which I'm not) due to worries that the city fathers and WSDOT would turn it into a Big Dig. Looks like my worries were well placed.
You do realize that there wasn't much difference in price between the three options and all three options included needing to do a seawall and the tunnel was the one that combined the two into one.
As for this being another "big dig" I highly doubt that, but you would be naive if you thought any option would have been cheap.
Also, I am not surprised you aren't a Seattle resident, you never sounded like you were...my guess is you could count on one hand the amount of times you have been to Seattle this past year, which seems to be the case from suburbanites that tend to be the noisiest complainers about the city.
Seattle is in the process of a big dig, drilling a tunnel to replace the old viaduct that runs from north of downtown to south of downtown. So far it has been problematic; according to Seattle Times columnist Ron Judd, a NW slug would have lapped progress of the tunnel. Let's all inch along together | Ron Judd | The Seattle Times
But several weeks ago, progress came to an absolute halt as the high-tech drill was stymied by a 'mystery object.' It turns out that it was a pipe, put in place by (drum roll) the WSDOT several years ago for one of their multitudinous 'studies.' The news was released by WSDOT on Friday afternoon, in time-honored gov't PR fashion. And the normal PR spokesperson was unavailable, and a stutterer was anointed to deliver the news.
#1. People in this country, no longer know how to run businesses/government, they don't know what they are doing, and do not have the qualifications to do it. I know it is difficult for some people to comprehend, but a whole lot of people who you vote in, to run things, do not know what they are doing...we no longer have experienced qualified people. And then when they do a bad job, we don't fire them....we ask them to resign, and give them pay and benifits to boot?
#2. I don't believe anyone is aware of the fact, that there are lines and pipes under ground, that no one knows about, b/c they were put there so many years ago. I used to work construction, and when companies start digging, they are given a map with shows, exactly what lines are where, and if they are not on the map, then whose fault would it be. There are gas lines, and water lines underground that no one knows about, period, and our infostructure is falling apart in this country. That is why Philly has so so so many water lines breaking.
Somewhat sarcastically I wonder if the Big Dig contractor called a company called DIG SAFE first to mark out all the underground lines. We do it around here.
I worked in Boston for the entire time they were building the BIG DIG that replaced a completely inadequate overhead road with a huge tunnel built in horrible conditions. I watched crews chew down the steel structure and replace it with a shallow cut and cover tunnel. This structure carries far more traffic safely than the original and has, by opening up the harbor front part of the city made downtown much more appealing. The project went wildly over initial cost expectations because the conditions were mostly "what you find is what you get". Another major benefit was the project kept the construction industry in eastern New England alive for 20 years and did not involve sending any of our soldiers to die in far off lands to protect petroleum owners profits.
As far a leaking pontoons for the floating bridge is concerned, what do you expect from the lowest bidder? Quality?
Ah grasshoppa, 'you have to start digging to see what is down there".... oh we used that one as a rationale to pass obamacare legislation.
Chris Christie was confronted with the same cost overruns and stoipped a tunnel to save tons of taxpayer money. Give CC a call.
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