Legislature gives Romney the job of tunnel inspections, reopening decision
JULY 13, 2006 -- Saying they need to address a crisis that appears to be escalating, the Legislature on Thursday quickly approved Gov. Mitt Romney’s emergency proposal to take over control over Big Dig tunnel inspections and spend $20 million on a broad safety audit of the entire $14.6 billion project.
The bill was introduced early Thursday afternoon and approved before nightfall in the wake of Monday’s deadly ceiling collapse that has shaken public confidence in the downtown Boston tunnel system.
Investigators announced Thursday that the number of “suspect bolts” being examined had risen to 232, a development that lawmakers referenced as they whisked the unusual bill back to Romney’s desk. And a Romney administration deputy suggested that problems in other tunnels might be worse than those raised to date.
Senators passed the bill on a roll call of 32-2, but said they planned to revisit it next week.
The legislation empowers the Romney administration to initiate an independent investigation into the tunnels and transfers the responsibility for determining when to re-open the closed I-90 connector tunnel section with defective ceiling panels from the independent turnpike authority to the Romney administration and its transportation deputies.
The legislation appropriates $20 million for a "stem to stern" audit of the entire Big Dig project, Romney said.
“We are in the midst of a crisis of confidence in the Central Artery project as a whole,” House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi said during an afternoon press conference. “As a result of this tragic accident many people are questioning whether our transportation system is safe to travel through.”
“The governor feels and we feel that it’s an emergency situation,” said DiMasi
The House approved the bill 150 to 3 following brief floor remarks. “This is one of those issues that transcends politics,” said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Robert DeLeo (D-Winthrop). “This is one of those moments when we all have to come together to address some very, very serious questions.”
After a morning meeting with Romney, both DiMasi and Senate President Robert Travaglini said they agreed that turnpike authority chairman and Big Dig overseer Matthew Amorello should step down from his current position, but maintain a role at the authority and in the ongoing investigation.
Amorello, at a press conference of his own Thursday, rejected the increased calls for him to step aside, although he said he’s been discussing his status with his wife and family. Amorello said he was committed to finishing his term as MTA chairman, which ends in July 2007, but added: “I’ve talked many times on a personal nature with my wife, this afternoon. These decisions aren’t made unilaterally by me.”
Experts who appeared with Amorello said they’re now looking at about 232 “suspect bolts” on connecting rods that could potentially be problematic.
Michael Lewis, the Big Dig’s project manager, who joined Amorello at the press conference, said the timeframe for reopening the tunnel ranges from days to weeks and it’s possible that the highway will be reopened in segments.
The turnpike announced Thursday night that access to the I-93 North and South on-ramp from South Boston at Congress and B streets is "closed and detoured until further notice" for tunnel ramp inspection. Motorists are being detoured via Congress Street, to West Service Road to the South Boston Bypass Road to access I-93 North and South. I-90 West motorists will continue to have access to I-93 North and South from the Ted Williams Tunnel.
Meanwhile, the state’s all-Democrat congressional delegation sent a letter to the National Transportation Safety Board urging federal interference. While federal investigators have been on site, the delegation requested a formal and technical review.
“The only way to identify flaws in the system and to definitively conclude that the roadways are safe is to place a thorough analysis in the hands of an agency that has had no previous involvement in the CA/T. The NTSB can conduct an independent review so that Massachusetts residents get the answers they deserve. We cannot wait any longer,” said the letter, signed by both senators and all 10 congressmen.
Romney said at an early afternoon press conference that if he is successful in his bid to remove turnpike chairman Matthew Amorello, Transportation Secretary John Cogliano would serve as interim chair while a search for a qualified professional begins.
Cogliano, who also attended the crowded press conference, said the westbound section of the Interstate 90 Connector tunnel may be in worse shape than the eastbound, based on reports he's receiving. Monday night's fatal concrete collapse occurred in the eastbound section.
At his press conference, Romney said “there should no longer be any doubt that the Turnpike Authority has failed to do its job effectively. It's hard to view Monday's catastrophe as an accident. As Attorney General Reilly has said, it's now a crime scene."
The governor’s legislation grants the executive branch the power to hire an outside firm or consultant whose investigation of the I-90 Connector tunnel would have “unlimited access to any and all Massachusetts turnpike authority facilities, plans, reports, drawings and documents, without reservation, that it shall deem necessary to carry out the immediate and exhaustive inspection.”
MTA personnel would report to the EOT, and the authority would direct contractors to do the same.
Phase two would use $20 million for an outside “comprehensive critical infrastructure safety audit of any and all tunnels part of the metropolitan highway system.” Those auditors would have the same power over MTA employees as the first effort.
Senators vowed to revisit the reconfiguration next week.
After the session, Travaglini told the News Service, “A number of our senators felt that to transfer the responsibility of making a determination, even the investigation of the tunnel system and structure itself, that the Department of Transportation and specifically the highway department have been participants all along in this project. So just to simply transfer the responsibility from the turnpike authority to two other entities that were already involved in this project for an extended period of time seemed unclear and inappropriate, but in the end we gave the governor what he was looking for, and we’ll see how it goes.”
In his press conference, Romney left room for future findings of fault with his own involvement with the Big Dig, but said he'd done his best. "Maybe someone can come up with something else I could have done, but I did everything that I could conceive of to get the authority to finally bring the Big Dig into the control of the state" rather than an independent authority, Romney said.
The governor, with his lieutenant governor and preferred gubernatorial candidate Kerry Healey standing beside him, took a pass on attacking Attorney General Thomas Reilly. Asked by a reporter if he saw a conflict in Reilly's roles as criminal investigator and the top official in the state's effort to recoup costs, Romney said he did not. "I haven't had any reason to believe that there's some conflict on his part," Romney said.
DiMasi told reporters that the “rally call” over the years for an “on-time, on-budget” Big Dig project may have played a roll in “more shoddy work and shortcuts just to cut corners here and the public safety has been jeopardized because of that.” DiMasi’s district abuts the project. Describing himself as “not too happy,” he said he was against the project “from the very beginning” due to its unprecedented construction methods and potential costs.
“That construction was the most disruptive construction in the entire country’s history and it’s the most expensive project and I was against it from the very beginning. However, it is here now and people need to be assured that it’s a safely constructed project.”
A Romney spokesman said he did not think the federal probe requested by the delegation would conflict with the governor’s efforts.
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