The monthlong, complete closure of Sumner Tunnel is set to begin Friday and will stay closed for a month for the long ongoing repair project. It’s the second summer in a row that the major artery connecting downtown to East Boston — including Logan Airport — will be shut down for weeks at a time.
Residents and commuters in the immediate vicinity like Phil Hamilton are bracing for impact.
Phil Hamilton lives in Winthrop and works in Boston. He says the past closures have made his commute a headache.
“The Ted Williams [Tunnel] backs up, and then you have to leave early,” Hamilton said. “And if you don’t leave early, you’re in the middle of a quagmire.”
The shutdown is part of a series of periodic closures that began in spring 2022. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is encouraging drivers to ditch their cars in favor of public transit, including: free rides on the Blue Line, free and reduced-cost ferry options, and reduced Commuter Rail fares along the Newburyport-Rockport line.
The airport, which saw nearly four million passengers this past May, has been blitzing the public with preemptory messaging in most parts of the airport, including with airlines.
“There will be traffic, there will be detours,” said Ben Crawley with the Massachusetts Port Authority. “We’ve had practice doing this over the weekends,” he added.
He said they’re advising that drivers add two hours to their drive times.
Alliena Stari, who lives in East Boston, says her family tries to plan around it.
“We just kind of have to suck it up,” she told GBH News. “Maybe travel later in the day when cars aren’t gonna be there, or try to stick it out early in the morning.”
“Luckily we have the Blue Line and the ferry from Winthrop,” Hamilton added. “But you get used to driving, you miss the driving!”
MassDOT officials said the latest shutdown will allow work on the tunnel ceiling, roadway, walls, lighting “and additional improvements which will increase safety and climate resiliency.”
After the tunnel reopens next month, the Sumner will close again over several weekends as MassDOT continues its $160 million rehabilitation project that’s expected to extend the tunnel’s life by another 50 years.
