The Big Dig

The Big Dig was a very expensive (ultimately $22 billion) federally-funded construction project that involved moving most of Boston's major traffic arteries underground.  This project had been in the works since the late 1950's, and actual construction lasted from 1991 to 2006.  Ever since its completion, the new road system has seemingly been plagued with problems and unseen consequences.  Apparently, a lot of the work completed and materials used in the construction were substandard.  Shortly after its opening, many of the tunnels showed signs of dangerous leaks, which were apparently due to pouring concrete before properly cleaning the area of gravel and other debris, leaving holes for water to migrate.  Also, shortly after its opening, a 3-ton concrete ceiling panel fell from one of the tunnel ceilings, crushing a car and killing one of the passengers.  This was due to workers using an epoxy designed for temporary use as a permanent bonding agent for the ceiling panels.  It was also discovered that much of the concrete used was sub-par itself.  Many of these aspects have caused lawsuits to erupt between the state and the contractors used for the project, as well as a major lawsuit between the family of the woman that was killed and the epoxy manufacturer.  As an unseen consequence, apparently even though the traffic situation within the city has been improved, it has begun to cause backups in other areas further out as people are trying to access the tunnels.  Overall, it just seems that this project was insanely expensive, and didn't really create very good results.  Maybe if better methods of construction and better materials were used, this project would have turned out better.

Good and bad cities

We've already talked as a class about many of the cities that were originally placed in both good and bad locations.  It seems that the best locations are those closest to a river or waterway, but not in a flood plain.  These locations provide both a good water supply for crops and other needs, but as well as a means of transporting goods.  I had actually already thought about Macon originally being in a well thought-out place.  Other cities that were built in what I believe to be good locations are Rome, which was built on the hills surrounding the Tiber River, and Istanbul (Constantinople); the actual layout of these cities as of today are not very organized, however.  A city that is actually in a decent location and is surprisingly well laid-out is Moscow, Russia.  By looking at a satellite image you can see that it's built around a river, and fans out in a circular pattern from this central point with a grid pattern in between.

Of course bad locations for cities are places where resources are not readily available, and have to be shipped in from other locations.  As we've already talked about, bad locations are places like the middle of the desert, where water and other supplies are a hot commodity.  Phoenix, Arizona is a prime example of a city in such a location; it does have a very organized grid-style layout, however. 

I guess maybe what would make an ideal city of tomorrow would be something along a good waterway with an organized layout (something like Moscow).  Goods and services would need to be placed somewhat evenly throughout the city.  It would also need a good infrastructure and public transportation to help people reach these locations easier and at the same time cut down on air pollution.