Quincy News: MTBA Green and Orange Line tunnels compromised by deteriorating garage support columns #mbta

MTBA Green and Orange Line tunnels compromised by deteriorating garage support columns

Featdured image via WCVB

– News covered by Quincy Quarry News with commentary added

The MBTA’s response to most anything?
A Statco Communications image

Official word has been foisted as to why the Green and Orange Line tunnels were closed underneath the under-demolition Government Center Garage has been disclosed: support columns for this garage built over the MBTA’s tunnels are apparently sorely degraded by years of moisture-fuelled deterioration.

As such, it would clearly appear that the problem has been long ongoing.

Even so, the head of the MBTA has announced that the MBTA will insist that those demolishing the garage will be held accountable for all costs incurred by the MBTA care of the closure of its tunnels.

Needless to say, the demolition contractor’s attorneys are licking their chops.

The MBTA’s attorneys in action …
An old Columbia Pictures image

After all, someone else built the columns long ago, who only knows who all is responsible for the columns not being properly maintained over the years as well as why the deterioration was not discovered and then properly dealt with sooner.

Even so, MBTA management is surely desperate to find a way to take the heat off it over all the many other ongoing problems at the T.

After all, at MBTA management is at least accountable even if not necessarily also responsible for the myriad of currently undergoing scrutiny problems via a still ongoing and likely to long continue investigation by the Federal Transportation Authority.

- FYI, not my fault. - No, of course it's not, dear.

Propped up UMass Boston parking garage
A Jonathan Wiggs?Boston Globe image

In any event, this mess reminds one of the horrifically expensive and potentially dangerous problems with the deteriorating underground garages underneath buildings at the University of Massachusetts, Boston.

For example, as for expense, not only has the use of this parking capacity long not been possible and thus other parking capacity had to be developed elsewhere as well as expensively, the buildings built over this closed underground parking is in the process of being replaced for reasons obvious.

And yes, as well as per long ongoing local tradition, this massive problem at UMass Boston involved a problematic contractor.

Propped up Quincy Center MBTA garage. <br/>What’s left of it anyway.
A Quincy Quarry News exclusive file photo

Quelle surprise …

Also no real surprise, this same contractor built the now mostly long-gone parking garage at the MBTA’s Quincy Center Station other than the lowest two and heavily spalled and thus disconcerting concrete decks are still in place over the Red Line passenger platform as well as part of the adjacent Commuter Rail platform, that is.

In short, building within air rights over complex infrastructure such as public transit rail lines is fraught with peril.

Even so, Quincy Mayor Thomas P. Koch, who is also a member of the MBTA Board of directors as well as has been the Chair of the MBTA Advisory Board for a decade, is championing both air rights development in Quincy as well as massively outsized transit-oriented developments near Quincy’s four Red Line stations even if the MBTA is, well, a joch.