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Big dig was estimated at $2.8 billion but ended up costing nearly $15 billion and taking forever
SR 99 Bored Tunnel in Seattle, up to 200 feet undergorund, is estimated at a total cost of $4.2 billion but has huge risks with potential of tunnel-boring machine getting stuck. This could be a huge debacle:
Big dig was estimated at $2.8 billion but ended up costing nearly $15 billion and taking forever
SR 99 Bored Tunnel in Seattle, up to 200 feet undergorund, is estimated at a total cost of $4.2 billion but has huge risks with potential of tunnel-boring machine getting stuck. This could be a huge debacle:
We won't know if the Seattle tunnel is a "debacle" until we know whether or not the boring machine will get stuck, or how much the final bill for the project is.
Debacle or not, the Alaskan Way Viaduct is a death trap. It was built in the early 1950's before proper seismic risk assessments had been done, and is built on a combination of infill and land near a vulnerable seawall. Making matters worse, it's a double-decker, which means that when it collapses, half the cars will get crushed underneath the other half, and all of that will fall on top of cars, pedestrians, and buildings underneath.
Not to mention that the seawall is expected to give way in the event of a major quake, thus tossing another nearby surface road into the bay along with buildings along the waterfront.
You might have several thousand killed along the AWV/seawall in their current conditions, as opposed to a few dozen dead if all that is replaced with a seismically-resistant tunnel and new seawall.
Along with a new levee system for the Sacramento basin, this is probably the most-pressing civil infrastructure need on the entire west coast of the US.
Debacle or not, the Alaskan Way Viaduct is a death trap. It was built in the early 1950's before proper seismic risk assessments had been done, and is built on a combination of infill and land near a vulnerable seawall. Making matters worse, it's a double-decker, which means that when it collapses, half the cars will get crushed underneath the other half, and all of that will fall on top of cars, pedestrians, and buildings underneath.
Not to mention that the seawall is expected to give way in the event of a major quake, thus tossing another nearby surface road into the bay along with buildings along the waterfront.
You might have several thousand killed along the AWV/seawall in their current conditions, as opposed to a few dozen dead if all that is replaced with a seismically-resistant tunnel and new seawall.
Along with a new levee system for the Sacramento basin, this is probably the most-pressing civil infrastructure need on the entire west coast of the US.
Yeah, but is the current solution really the best way to go?
Yeah, but is the current solution really the best way to go?
This was investigated for almost 10 years, and this is the best solution all the experts came up with. So I guess the answer to your question is yes- I'm not sure there are any options anyone could come up with that haven't already been studied.
The SR99 project is so very complex and risky, but I'm all for it. That along with the seawall replacement will give Seattle its waterfront back. That being said, I was not 100% against the alternative, which was tear down the viaduct, put in a surface street and hope that that, the rest of downtown, and I5 could absorb the overflow that used to rely on the viaduct to get through downtown. I do think that it may meet or exceed the complexity of the Big Dig.
I thought the Seattle tunnel might be cancelled with the election of the new mayor
The mayor is against it, but the city council has overridden his veto with every roadblock he's put up against it.
In all seriousness, I do not think a surface road would have worked either. Would have overwhelmed traffic on I-5.
And what is lost on most people is that the city held a referendum on what option they wanted (surface street vs. tunnel) and they waffled. So the state came in and decided for them.
And to be blunt, the current elevated highway is an eyesore and a danger. If another Nisqually quake happened, this is the result:
Personally, I don't want this to happen. What do you want, keep the current one? Baloney.
And it's funny you think TBD was a blunder .... everyone I know in Boston raves about it now. Sure it was confusing when it first opened and there were issues after it opened, but now it's awesome.
The mayor is against it, but the city council has overridden his veto with every roadblock he's put up against it.
In all seriousness, I do not think a surface road would have worked either. Would have overwhelmed traffic on I-5.
And what is lost on most people is that the city held a referendum on what option they wanted (surface street vs. tunnel) and they waffled. So the state came in and decided for them.
And to be blunt, the current elevated highway is an eyesore and a danger. If another Nisqually quake happened, this is the result:
Personally, I don't want this to happen. What do you want, keep the current one? Baloney.
And it's funny you think TBD was a blunder .... everyone I know in Boston raves about it now. Sure it was confusing when it first opened and there were issues after it opened, but now it's awesome.
I totally agree about the viaduct being an eyesore! You walk along the waterfront and see that big ugly monstrosity up there, with the roaring/thumping of traffic as it passes overhead- it really does take away from the experience down there.
And it's funny you think TBD was a blunder .... everyone I know in Boston raves about it now. Sure it was confusing when it first opened and there were issues after it opened, but now it's awesome.
When did I say that? I might have a while ago...
I'm a bit mixed myself. It did good things but I'm not sure if it was worth the price.
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