Safety first

THE REOPENING of the Interstate 90 tunnel has been delayed indefinitely because of the criminal investigation and because the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority is worried that a great number of ceiling panels may pose a threat to motorists. The authority is right to be cautious. Motorists need to be confident that the tunnel is safe, and they need to feel a similar sense of security in the rest of the Central Artery system.

Matthew Amorello, the Turnpike Authority chairman, has told Michael Swanson, his chief engineer, and three engineering firms that frequently work for the authority to examine the highway system under turnpike control from Route 128 to Boston, to determine if there are trouble spots like the ceiling flaw that resulted in the death of Milena Del Valle on Monday.

Amorello, however, has a credibility problem, which may rub off on the consulting engineers. Nobody working for the authority had an inkling that the I-90 ceiling was about to collapse. An emergency inspection is fine for now, but a more thorough look at the Central Artery system is necessary to decide as definitively as humanly possible whether other potentially deadly problems lurk beneath the concrete and steel.

Amorello, in a telephone interview yesterday, said it won't be easy to get independent, highly-skilled engineers for this examination. Many are compromised by having worked on the two-decade artery project. But the very best must be found, and promptly. As the traffic jams occasioned by the I-90 closure indicate, the artery system is essential to the transportation needs of the Boston area. It has to be reopened and state government has an obligation to make sure that it is safe in reality and in perception.

At the moment, the public has no way to be sure whether the design and construction of the artery were first class, with a few exceptions, or whether much of the project was victimized by shortcuts and shoddy workmanship like other public construction projects. The artery system was far more complex, of course, but the failure this week brings to mind such public building fiascos as the library at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and the parking garage at UMass-Boston.

The question of whether Amorello will serve out the final year of his term has taken center stage. His troubles have deepened now that Governor Romney, intent on forcing him out, has gained a majority on the five-member turnpike board. A legislative sleight-of-hand was supposed to keep one of Romney's people off the board, but that seems likely to fail in the backlash from the I-90 collapse.

But it is crucial now that the personalities and finger-pointing take a back seat. Whether Amorello leaves or hangs on, the governor and his people on the board should also support an independent review of the entire artery to prevent further tragedies. After all the politics is done, the highway should remain as a safe and durable passage through the city and on to the airport.