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News from Massachusetts - Boston's "Big Dig"

The largest public works project in the nation’s history has been plagued with death, criminal indictments and convictions, mismanagement, bankruptcies, bribery, and a touch of the mafia.  Privately designed, privately constructed, privately inspected, and privately managed, the project to put highways underground in Boston took twice as long (20 years) as originally estimated and the cost jumped from $2.7 billion to more than $15 billion.  More than 600 tunnel leaks have resulted in flooding up to one million gallons per month.  In 2006, a ceiling slab fell and killed a motorist.  Bechtel and Parsons Brinckerhoff, the project managers, agreed to pay more than $450 million to settle most claims and avoid criminal prosecution.  Another contractor, Powers Fasteners, was indicted for involuntary manslaughter.  Aggregate Industries pled guilty to fraud for supplying 5700 truckloads of substandard concrete and paid $50 million to settle the case.  Two former project managers pled guilty to conspiracy to submit false bills.  The largest construction contractor, Modern Continental, filed for bankruptcy after facing criminal charges consisting of 49 counts and a potential $24.5 million fine for allegedly concealing faulty work and overbilling.  A father and son contractor pled guilty to fraud and larceny charges regarding rigging the weights of truck scales and were sentenced to a total of 13 years of prison time and probation.  Boston's "Cheese Man," with alleged ties to the mafia, is awaiting trial for bribing a highway inspector (who turned out to be an undercover FBI agent) to provide defective materials for the project.   

7/28/09	WBUR.ORG - Tollpayers Urge Settlement in Turnpike Revenue Suit
5/19/09	Associated Press - Congress Slow on Tunnel Safety in Wake of Big Dig Collapse
3/30/09	Legal Newsline - Last Settlement Reached in Big Dig Suits
3/19/09	Boston Globe -  Beacon Hill Leaders Act to Delay MassPike Toll Hikes Until July
2/26/09	MSNBC.com - Big Dig Contractor Pleads Guilty in Overbill Scheme
2/25/09	Boston Globe - Turnpike OK's Toll Increases, Awaits Decision on Gas Taxes
1/30/09	Boston Herald - Big Dig "Culprits" Still Making Massachusetts Cash
1/10/09	Boston Globe - Turnpike May Face $400 Million Payment
12/19/08	Boston Globe - Former Big Dig Official Appointed to Top Transportation Post
12/17/08	Boston Globe - Manslaughter Charges Dismissed in Big Dig Collapse
12/17/08	Reuters - Massachusetts Settles in "Big Dig" Criminal Case
12/16/08	Boston Herald - Transportation Czar Bernard Cohen Resigns
12/11/08	Forbes.com - Mass. Turnpike Moving to Lay off 20 Toll Takers
12/9/08	Boston Herald - Big Dig Firm Eyed for $300M Bridge Job
12/3/08	Boston Globe - New Turnpike Partnership Could Give Mass. Cash
11/25/08	Marblehead.com - House Looks to Fast-Track Hearing on Toll Mitigation, Gas Tax Bills
11/20/08	Bloomberg.com - Massachusetts Rebels Over $7 Tunnel Tolls as Debt Costs Rise
11/15/08	Boston Globe - Companies to Settle for $26 Million in Tunnel Collapse
11/14/08	Boston Globe - Pike Board Approves Toll Hike
10/16/08	Boston Globe - Big Dig Workers Sentenced in Overbilling Scheme
10/1/08	Boston Globe - $28M Settlement in Fatal Big Dig Collapse
9/30/08	Boston Globe - Family Gets $28M in Big Dig Settlement
9/26/08	Boston Globe - Big Hike in Tolls for Pike Looming
9/15/08	Boston Globe - Finance Plan for T, Pike Readied
9/4/08	Boston Globe - Crack on Big Dig Bridge Limits Trucks
9/3/08	UPI.com - Judge Rules Waritime Law Applies to Big Dig
8/14/08	Boston Globe -Panel Urges More Funds to Keep Tunnels Safe
8/5/08	Boston Globe - Patrick Signs $3b Bill to Fix Bridges
8/5/08	Boston Globe - Governor May Soon Hold Agency Purse Strings
7/16/08	Boston Globe - State Tries to Rescue Pike from Huge Debt
7/10/08	AP - Contractors Plead Guilty in Big Dig Fraud Scheme
6/29/08	USA Today - Big Dig Contractor, Manager Plead Guilty to Fraud
6/27/08	Boston Globe - Big Dig's Flawed Contractor
6/23/08	Reuters - Boston "Big Dig" Contractor Seeks Bankruptcy
6/21/08	Reuters - Major "Big Dig" Contractor Faces Federal Charges
6/20/08	US Attorney's Office Press Release - Big Dig Contractor, Modern Continental, Charged
6/20/08	Boston Globe - Big Dig Contractor Charged with Lying About Quality, Overbilling
6/13/08	WBZTV.com - Father and Son Plead Guilty in Big Dig Fraud Case
5/21/08	Boston Globe - Alleged Mobster 'Cheese Man' is Released on Bail
5/21/08	Boston Globe - Reputed Mob Underboss to Go Free on Bail; DiNunzio Called Not Dangerous
5/13/08	Boston Herald - Judge Considers Springing Cheeseman
5/13/08	Boston Globe - Lawyer: 'The Cheese Man' Talked Tough, But Never Hurt Anybody
5/12/08	Boston Herald - Cheese Man: Release Me
5/8/08	Boston Herald - Insider: Hub's Mob in the Toilet; Cheeseman Seeks a Larger Bathroom
5/2/08	Boston Globe - Carmen 'Cheese Man' DiNunzio Indicted in Big Dig
4/3/2008	Boston Herald – Bechtel Netted $5.3 Million from Us After Dig “Done”
3/14/2008	Boston Globe – No Big Dig Copycats: As other cities consider removing elevated freeways, activists cite Boston as reason not to go underground
3/3/2008	Boston Globe – Big Dig Still Runs a Long To-Do List:  2,000 final touches left for contractors; no official date set for completion.
2/26/2008	CENews.com – Big Dig Firm to Pay $458 Million
2/1/2008	Boston Herald - Contractors Seek $145M from Pike for Dig Extras
1/24/2008	Boston Globe - Big Dig Settlement Will Take Quick Hit: $100M Needed for Immediate Fixes
1/23/2008	Associated Press - Big Dig Contractors to Settle for $458 M
1/13/2008	Boston Globe - Big Dig Tunnels Spring 237 Leaks
12/25/2007	Associated Press - Boston's $14.4B Big Dig Finally Complete
12/18/2007	Boston Globe - Study Sees Progress in Filling Big Dig Leaks
11/20/2007	Boston Globe - Years Later, Billions Spent, Big Dig Finally Winds Down
9/12/2007	ENR – Epoxy Firm Arraigned For Involuntary Manslaughter
8/28/2007	Boston Globe – Guilty Plea Accepted for Substandard Concrete
8/22/2007	Boston Globe – Turnpike OK’s $2.3 Million More for Big Dig Leaks
8/21/2007	AP – At Least 500 Leaks Await Repair in Big Dig Tunnels
7/28/2007	Boston Globe – Big Dig Payment for Fraud at $50 M
7/23/2007	Patriot Ledger – Critics: Reject Possible Big Dig Deal; They Say Contractor Would be Let Off
7/11/2007	ENR – Epoxy and Inspections Cited for Boston Tunnel Accident
7/11/07	San Francisco Chronicle –  Bechtel Shares Blame in Big Dig Tragedy
7/10/07	NTSB News – Safety Board Determines Cause of Boston’s Big Dig Tunnel Ceiling Collapse Last Year
12/24/06	Boston Globe – Cheaper, Faster Path Led to Failure; Ceiling Design was Weakened
11/28/06	San Francisco Chronicle – Bechtel in Hot Seat over Big Dig Crisis;  SF Company, Others Face Lawsuits in Boston
7/11/2006	CNN.com – Woman Killed When Part of Ceiling Falls in Big Dig Tunnel
6/25/06	Boston Globe – Critics Cite Lack of Big Dig Oversight
6/12/06	Boston Herald – Workmanship and Design of Tunnel are Called into Question
02/9/2003	Boston Globe – Artery Error Cost More Than $1B