By Stephanie Miceli - July 26, 2010
It's not a
bridge over troubled water, but water under a troubled bridge. The Longfellow Bridge -- named for poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow who boasted of its splendor and grandeur -- is less inspirational today, suffering from rusty steel ribs and crumbling
masonry.
After a bridge collapsed in Minneapolis in 2007, killing 13 people, Governor Deval Patrick, turned neglect into urgency with a statewide bridge project. Engineers found the Longfellow Bridge merited repairs that couldn't wait.
A task force consisting of state,
federal, and city officials; environmental leaders; bike, pedestrian, and
transit advocates; business and neighborhood associations; historic
conservation and preservation groups; Mass. General and Mass. Eye and Ear, and
others will meet Tuesday to consider possibilities for the aging Longfellow
Bridge.
Convened by state highway administrator
Luisa
Paiewonsky, the group will discuss how to orchestrate Massachusetts'
rehabilitation of the historic landmark without compromising the habitual hum
of motorists, Red Line riders, and the bikers and pedestrians who navigate the
Bridge's narrow lanes.
The
six-year, $300 million rehabilitation could possibly close the bridge to
Cambridge-bound motorists for years. It is potentially the most disruptive
project in the state's 300-bridge, $3 billion Accelerated Bridge Program, which
aims to restore bridges "safely, swiftly, and on budget."
Though the
bridge was made more inviting for the automobile nearly 50 years after its 1906
construction, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino said at a bicycle summit, "the car is
no longer king."
During Mitt
Romney's gubernatorial term, he declared the neglected Longfellow Bridge would
be restored as part of his "fix it first" agenda. Though Romney vowed the work
would commence as early as 2006, his goal was not realized. However, the Department
of Conservation and Recreation, which owned the bridge, began collaborating on
renovation drawings with the Highway Department.
Construction crews began work on the less expensive,
less complicated phase 1 in June. Their work entails relocating utilities
operating under the bridge and testing the steel beams to assess whether they
should be restored or replaced altogether.
The second
phase, however, has merited more controversy. It will consist of restoring and
reconstructing the bridge's support structure and deck. While the plan would
keep the same number of vehicle lanes, it would eliminate a few inches from
each to create wider bike lanes and sidewalks that can accommodate wheel
chairs.
However,
several groups have said the plan will not meet state and federal objectives
aimed at cutting carbon emissions and addressing an obesity epidemic.
But advocates of the second phase of construction say Longfellow traffic has declined with the opening of the nearby Zakim Bridge. They see not an alienation of motorists, but an invitation to pedestrians and bikers.
(Photo Courtesy: AP Images)
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