Thursday, 4:30 PM
Ted Williams' two extra inches a big difference for some trucks
By Andrew Ryan, Globe Correspondent
When the Ted Williams Tunnel opened in 1995, it offered truckers something extra: two additional inches of clearance that allowed taller trailers easy access to Logan International Airport and the North Shore.
But the Big Dig closures after the partial collapse of a tunnel ceiling last month have taken that two-inch bonus away, sending some eastbound drivers on costly roundabout routes through the city.
“Firms that have cargo have a real problem because they have trucks that are designed to fit this tunnel that don’t fit the Callahan and the Sumner” Governor Romney said at an afternoon press conference. “Until this tunnel is open they can’t get cargo in and out.”
Crews have finished work on a ramp that would allow access to the Ted Williams and are waiting for federal approval before reopening the tunnel, Romney said.
The older and shorter Sumner and Callahan tunnels run side-by-side and function as a single roadway beneath Boston's Inner Harbor. The Callahan, with a clearance of 13 feet 4 inches, brings motorists from downtown Boston to the airport and East Boston. The 12-feet-4 inch tall Sumner takes drivers from East Boston into the North End.
The Ted Williams Tunnel, with its 13 feet 6 inch clearance, has been closed to eastbound traffic heading toward the airport since shortly after the July 10 accident.
“Two inches may not sound like a lot, but we do understand it is impacting a lot of commercial trucking companies and forcing them to take circuitous routes around the city,” said Jon Carlisle, spokesman for the state Transportation Department.
One of those companies is Chelsea-based GMS Transportation, which hauls general commodities, from computer equipment to clothing, for ocean and air shipping companies.
“It’s costing me an hour each night for each vehicle,” said co-owner Steven Mortell. “That ends up being a lot of money.”
GMS has several daily truck routes on the South Shore. Instead of using the Ted Williams Tunnel, drivers have to take the Tobin Bridge to Route 1 and cut through Charlestown. Between the detour and the traffic, Mortell estimate that runs were taking an additional 6 hours. At $55 to $60 an hour for drivers, the almost month-long closure has cost GMS around $350 a day.
Anne M. Lynch at the Massachusetts Motor Transportation Association said that while it is impossible to quantify how many trucking companies have been affected by the tunnel closures, the delays are adding up.
“It will ultimately trickle down to consumers,” Lynch said. “People forget that.”
