Aug 8, 2008 5:58 pm US/Eastern
Train Speed Reductions Lifted On Longfellow Bridge
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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The Longfellow Bridge
WBZ
Speed restrictions have been lifted for the Red Line trains on the Longfellow Bridge as repairs progress to a point where it's safe for the trains to resume normal speeds, officials with the Department of Conservation and Recreation said Friday.
DCR officials, consultants, MassHighway and Federal Highway officials reviewed repairs and agreed the trains can resume speed.
Speed restrictions had been implemented as significant repairs began on the bridge.
Since August 2007, DCR has spent more than $1 million on inspections and $4.5 million on repairs to the Longfellow Bridge. More than 200 jack beams have been replaced, and more than 180 railing brackets have been repaired.
The agency estimates that 65 percent of the anticipated repairs have been completed, with full completion expected this fall.
Vehicular traffic will continue to be restricted and 20-ton trucks are still prohibited from the Longfellow Bridge. Cars are only allowed on the two outside lanes.
The Longfellow Bridge is one of 300 bridges in Massachusetts included in a plan to borrow nearly $3 billion to repair the most neglected bridges.
There are 543 structurally deficient state bridges. At current funding levels, that number would grow to almost 700 in the next eight years, a 30 percent increase.
With the added spending, the number should drop by about 15 percent instead.
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