Photo: Courtesy of MassDOT
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — State officials announced on Thursday they are revising the scheduled summer-long Sumner Tunnel full closure to make it shorter.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation said the closure will be almost cut in half this summer to help limit the impact it will have on travelers. While the closure will be shorter this summer, there will be a second closure in the summer of 2024 to finish the work.
The closure will now take place from July 5 through August 31 — an eight-and-a-half week-long period. The full closure was originally supposed to take place from May through September 4 for the Sumner Tunnel Restoration Project.
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“We are pleased to be announcing a shorter closure of the Sumner Tunnel to traffic this summer, basically half as long this summer as previously planned,” Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver said in a statement. “Since launching the Sumner Tunnel Restoration Project last year, we have been working closely with our contractor to identify every opportunity to reduce traffic impacts. Breaking up the full closure for only eight and a half weeks this summer rather than four months significantly benefits regional travelers, local businesses, and area residents.”
The project's 2023 summer timeframe was moved between July 4 and Labor Day because traffic volume is historically at its lowest during that time, making the construction more manageable for traffic management, MassDOT said.
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