The Big Dig, a project funded by federal and stated monies (about 60/40), was substantially completed late in 2007 for nearly $15 billion.
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But few had a bigger stake in the project than four high-stakes players: •Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff (B/PB) the joint venture hired by the Commonwealth in 1985 to manage Big Dig design and construction; •Federal Highway Administration (FHWA—in the U.S. Department of Transportation), the federal funding agency for the ...
However, the project was completed in December 2007 at a cost of over $8.08 billion (in 1982 dollars, $21.5 billion adjusted for inflation, meaning a cost overrun of about 190%) as of 2020.
There were some huge pros to the Big Dig: submerging the interstate cleared up some horrific traffic congestion (vehicles used to crawl for 10 hours a day), opened up 300 acres of land, and jumpstarted the Innovation District.
About two-thirds of the dirt went to landfills and other sites. Moving all that dirt took more than 541,000 truckloads. If all those trucks lined up end to end, they'd back up 4,612 miles. That's all the way to Brasilia, capital of Brazil, as the crow flies, or to the Panama Canal over land.
Perhaps ironically, the Blue Line takes several points of pride from its proximity to water, which gives it its name. Local historians claim the tunnel that runs under the harbor as the first underwater subway tunnel in the United States.
With interest, the project could ultimately cost around $24 billion, finally getting paid off in 2038. Besides creating a financial nightmare, the Big Dig was plagued by huge constructional flaws – which obviously added fuel to the fiscal firestorm.