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It took a feat of engineering and a power struggle to connect the Ted Williams tunnel to Boston
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- čas přidán 17. 10. 2023
- In 1990 the new republican Governor, Bill Weld, put Jim Kerasiotes in charge of the Big Dig. Kerasiotes' reputation for cutting budgets and staff earned him the nickname "Hatchet Man." This episode is about how Kerasiotes struggled to contain costs and maintain control of the project all while an extraordinary feat of engineering successfully created a new tunnel underneath Boston's Fort Point Channel that would allow drivers to access the Ted Williams tunnel and Logan Airport.
You can hear more from Jim Kerasiotes in an interview with Ian Coss here: studio.youtube...
This is the fifth in a nine-part podcast series about history and politics of the Big Dig - one of the most notoriously troubled infrastructure projects in American history. It was created as an audio experience. This presentation includes archival images.
Episode 1: • The Big Dig began with...
Episode 2: • How two competing tunn...
Episode 3: • How Boston's Big Dig s...
Episode 4: • Here's why Boston's be...
Episode 6: • Here's how billions of...
Episode 7: • How a power struggle o...
Episode 8: • Boston's Big Dig tunne...
Episode 9: • The Big Dig transforme...
You can find more about The Big Dig podcast at www.wgbh.org/p....
GBH News is a premier source for in-depth local news and original story telling based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Subscribe to the GBH CZcams channel: www.youtube.co....
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We can’t do it without you. Support our award-winning community journalism by donating today: bit.ly/Support...
So, what does the "Hatchet Man" think of the Big Dig podcast? Check out his conversation with host Ian Coss here: studio.czcams.com/users/videoHeWR1hOicFQ/edit
I binged the first 4 episodes while waiting for a flight from Boston to San Francisco. On my way to the airport, I took the Fort Point to the Ted Williams tunnel and dropped my rental car off at a garage that used to be an East Boston neighborhood, flattened by Ed King. While eating an airport sandwich, I suddenly realized that it too was likely prepared in a facility sitting where the Olmsted-designed Wood Island Park once was (before being bulldozed by Ed King). The totality of what I was learning and experiencing hit me like a truck. Hats off to the GBH news team for creating such a fantastic series.
Ed King was a Republican who got elected by lying that he was a Democrat.
He later sued for defamation. And he was so insufferable that the jury found in his favor -- and awarded him the total maximum award of $1.00. And overpayment by at least 1 cent.
Longtime journalist here. This series should be required listening for young journalists on so many levels. Awesome research and reporting, which leads to top-notch writing and storytelling. But beyond that, it's a great inside look on how government affairs work, how and why decisions are made, how personalities and politics can alter those decisions, and how, in the end, we are all human and everyone has a story.
Thank you so much! So glad a fellow journalist is enjoying the podcast
@@GBHNews Great series thank you. Too bad Silber didn't win and become governor, he was more serious about managing than Weld. Silber would have kept Salvucci and his people, Glynn probably would have stayed, and the Big Dig would have gone much better.
@@GBHNews It's what journalism can be if it is allowed to be; so much of it anymore is just changing the logos on press releases. You folks are a gem.
this is such a fantastic, well-produced podcast, and an important document that captures the history of the big dig
Having worked decades in construction, the marvel of engineering is often hobbled by the "unforeseen" obstacles that often arise while engineers often scramble, argue, drift, calculate, brainstorm, and fumble. Kerasiotes "Hatchet Man" was likely the perfect "take charge" go-between man and Weld knew it and flicked away Bechtel's three hour meeting as a "I'll listen but ...nah" because there needs to be reasonable accountability managing and a "Hatchet Man" on every sizable project anywhere remotely the size and scale of the Big Dig.
This is an absolutely brilliant piece of journalism! I graduated H.S. in 1996. Growing up South of Boston & having 1 parent who's office was in Boston & another commuting to or through Boston over 5 days a week I heard plenty about The Big Dig. The Globe also had no shortage of pieces. I truly miss "old school" journalism as I'm sure many real journalists do in our current society dominated often by misinformation & "likes". Very much impressed by this piece & look forward to more
This series is so good! I love the video version for showing the key players AND giving us a glimpse of the local artist's paintings. And the muddy earth. A picture is truly worth a thousand words.
I remember hearing about Bechtel being a powerful company able to build cities -- but never got such a detailed look at their actual work and relationship to government agencies.
Bravo!
you should check out the book Digging, by Michael Hintlian. A local Boston photographer who doumented a lot of the project
I know of Bechtel from their involvement with the RiverLINE in New Jersey. Taking a bunch of money out of the public organizations that are so starved for funding that they have to outsource because they can't have inside expertise seems to be a big part of their business model.
When in the transit advocacy culture from mid'90s, I was being mentored by a senior partner in a small Cambridge architectural Firm, who knew a lot of people in high places.
He would go on at length about the opacity of Bechtel, as he was trying to revive the railway link, and wanted to see the ongoing design engineering in progress.
His observations corroborates years in advance, what is reported in this installment. There is so much stuff that happens behind the scenes that never makes it to the news.
From bag job studies, to slow walking, turf skirmishes, political grudges, and "burning bridge" engineering, to assure some concepts are doomed to an endless cycle of study and re-study as stalling tactic, to dissipate the energy of citizen-advocates.
This is some great telling of the story behind The Big Dig. I’m enjoying every second of it. Thank you so much for producing this!
Thank YOU for listening to it!
Terrific series! The human layers of this story are greater than the layers of soil they had to dig through to build the CA/T!
Looove this series! As a fellow massachusetts native, i find this so interesting. I remember being a little kid and trying to navigate boston with my dad during the big dig on our way to fenway park 😂😂. Already looking forward to next wednesday!!!
This series has been phenomenal! Great work, and I can't wait for the next episode!
How do you think the "Hatchet Man" handled this job?
I think Bill Weld is a good guy.
Jim was a highway guy, and if transit would need to remain stagnant or degrade to cover the cost overruns, so be it.
Thank you for producing such a wonderful podcast. I have eagerly awaited each episode
This is a very well told story. Great job!
I don't live in Boston, nor will I ever see any part of these river crossings with my own eyes, but it's a fascinating walk through a notorious construction project that made world news for years.
If you ever visit come in the spring. It's heavenly. Flowering trees line the brick fronts and then cover the streets in a rainbow of silk pedals. You can get food from around the world and Brookline has better bagel sandwiches than Brooklyn IMO.
@@TheHonestPeanut Most of my travel stays within Europe now, I'll probaly never get to see any of what you mention - but we have enough here to get on with. :)
@@Jablicek yeah you can't really beat the beauty of European cities either. Best to keep away from the states until the country grows out of it's angry spoiled teenager stage anyway.
@@TheHonestPeanut
So just like Europe?
@@IkeOkerekeNews yeah European cities are like Europe 🤦♂️
Really took an unexpected turn with the whole "Gates of Hell" artwork thing....
I’m a trucker and have delivered to that USPS sorting facility in Boston. Super tight backing for longhaul trucks with 53 foot trailers! And navigating the nearby surface streets during the day into the facility requires being quite aggressive with the horn and hogging lanes to safely clear the truck around some corners.
I've been loving this series, but man it is amazing how much I had blocked out the central artery from my memory! I used to hate driving to Logan so bad that I would pay extra to fly out of PWM and arrive at BOS in a turboprop!
Now that it's all done and behind us, I don't really mind driving there anymore.
I have those six phases of the project on my office wall
Keep these coming. This stuff is amazing
I love that the way people actually talk is left in. Too much bleeping swear words usually. People curse.
This series is fantastic! I really appreciate the visual media that’s nice to watch, but not necessary for the story, except for scenario Z Owo
I’ve never been to Boston, but I remember watching a series about the Big Dig’s construction on Modern Marvels as a child and have been interested ever since.
I remember reading the Globe about the whole controversy between the State Project Overseer, Karasiotes, and the Master Building Contractor , Bechtel. The Globe took no prisioners and lashed out at the State Agency. It made for some very interest reading back then.
It is sad the Globe is no longer as mighty as it once was. I ferried them along back then from Morrisey Boulevard to all parts of the city ( Rachid , a Muslim American ITOA cab driver was then near and dead to the Globe beat reporters and hauled a lot of them around ) , and they were excellent tippers and very kind to us drivers.
We got the Herald too, but the folks at the Globe had the finger on the wound. The folks from the Phoenix were nowhere close to the party, as far as I can remember.
My only disagreement with the facts stated in this episode is the characterization of Bechtel being an 800 pound gorilla. That descriptor is too mild. They are closer to a 100,000 pound gorilla. Which makes it all the more remarkable that Boston was able to claw back anything from them.
Why them though? Why did Bechtel get the contract in the first place? Why did the State ever agree to a cost+ contract. One thing I wish that was covered more was the bidding process and decision making behind the contract process. I understand why it wasn’t in this series but it’s definitely something I am really curious about now.
Because these companies have more power than governments do. I don't think they needed tone more than 800lbs to be a real problem.
If they wanted to build it, and they didn't have any way to do it otherwise, what was the option?
Bechtel has got to be the king of private companies that gouge governments on construction projects.
For real.
The company will never have the best interest of the public at heart.
I like the song.
greetings from germany!
Greetings!
I just want to say how much I am enjoying listening to this and how informative it is and how it's such an exemplar for everything that's going on with projects like these.
But I really do think the paradox of privatization is resolvable and rather easily: the city of Boston, and cities like it, ultimately generate an enormous amount of wealth. They fail to take an appropriate cut of that wealth, at all levels, because of the way politics are currently laid out: if you are a large company that has the money to do it, you can convince politicians to keep taxes low. And so cities do not have the money that they ought to have to have their own experts like this, so they are behold into these companies that have incredible power, and the money to hire the best people, and the only reason they have that money is because we let them keep way more of it than they had coming to them.
We fed the 800 pound gorilla the entire time I've been alive (which is around the same time as the start of this story). What did we expect it to then do?
This was an interesting segment although as someone unfamiliar with present-day Boston I found it a bit confusing as it seemed to jump occasionally into near present-day infrastructure before going back in time. The in-depth explanations of the engineering challenges and solutions was fascinating. In turn those exposed the flaws of journalists who treated the project like the state was buying $8 billion of widgets rather than trying to do something that had never been done before. All estimates are just that, based on projections and assumptions that may not hold up to reality. Bechtel likely tried to avoid financial responsibility but if the State had tried to do it themselves it would likely still be a work in progress.
Not knowing the outcome, did Proposal Z end up getting built?
PART 5! YAY!!!
Such a shame we didn’t get a dedicated silver line tunnel
Before the Ted Williams Tunnel was open to regular cars, I remember riding through a tunnel from Logan in a taxi. That must have been before the Fort Point Channel Tunnel. How long did that phase last? How did the cabs cross the channel?
A good half hour from the toll gates to the financial , a licensed hackney from early 90’s till 2012. Stop and go. To put into perspective , once the Ted became functional , max ten minutes.
There was the Boston Haul Road which went past the flower market and Gillette.
@@erik_griswold Boston Haul road did not pass by the Flower Market, which is by Albany Street on South End, at the opposite side of the I-93. The Haul Road came off I-93 Northbound , and rolled parallel to it towards the one of the Tunnel many entrances.
@@serafinacosta7118 Thanks for the correction. It has been a while since I rode on it.
@@erik_griswold no mention it. You’re welcomed.
8:57. Weld Didn't challenge anyone in 2020 except himself 🤣
I am surprised the buried tank filled with rusty razor blades was bot mentioned
I thought we just all had those in the walls of our homes. Gillette had one too? :-D
Privatization fucks over everything
The audio video disconnection is bothersome
It's a podcast that was never intended to have video. Take a breath.
How does privatization work to cut taxes?
Instead of paying gov't employees, those departments are shrunk or eliminated, and in their place gov't makes contracts with private corporations that cost more than gov't employees -- and pays them with taxpayer monies.
And that was the core deceit unleashed by Reagan. Promoted by the lie that the corporations, paid with more taxpayer monies than gov't employment costs, would create jobs with all that money, and tax cuts. Instead there was introduced cronyism and contract fraud.
And then, Gillette decided to move their manufacturing operation to Andover.
Bwahahaha!
A young Frank Salvucci sat at his grandma’s table eating a Wonderbread and Cornflakes sandwich when he had a vision… “Nona, someday I will bury these evil highways so they don’t destroy other grandmas houses!” “Oh, Frankie Frankie, how will you ever build a bureaucracy so vast and benevolente?”
Meanwhile over in Medfield little Jimmy K was once again embroiled in a dispute with the school library over ignored late fees… “I going to take a hatchet to all your scam jobs and, and BURY you! I don’t give a damn how much it costs - or how long it takes! I’ll be driving over your graves!”
Monty Python couldn’t do a better satire of Democrat Party mythologizing! Comedy gold from, GBHaich.
Incoherent babble
@@bloodorange6713
Stick to Pocahontas’ “lore” Shaggy, you’re outa your league.
How is being a sad old man going for you?
@@rynovoski I have PBS to keep me amused!
Ah yes, let’s praise the “god” the oil companies let be a king so they can exponentially print more cash
I side with Gillette , we gotta look clean and i will NEVER go to boston .
a feat of fleecing of the national taxpayers.....
we need an other big dig ,keep the trades employed ,possible tunnel,be a great repalcement for the Tobin Bridge !
I am at minute 4:25, and I have to call a slight "bs" on the person being interviewed. He could have put that up on a wall at home to celebrate his late friend. I am not saying that it was bad that he had that rep, but I am 100% calling BS on his explanation of why it ended up displayed at his office instead of at his home.