Big Dig tunnel workers given the weekend off

Despite public statements that work to reopen access to the Ted Williams Tunnel was pressing forward, a memo written on Friday said the team working on the Big Dig ``decided to take the weekend off" because of the ``duress the team has been under and the lack of an approved remedial design," according to an excerpt of the memo, provided to the Globe by a representative of a contractor.

The memo helped to shed light on why reporters on Saturday observed the area around the site of the Interstate 90 connector ceiling collapse to be deserted.

Governor Mitt Romney last week had held out the possibility of reopening access to the eastbound side of the Ted Williams Tunnel from South Boston as early as today, so long as the ceiling was determined to be secure and safe.

When a reporter asked about the deserted site on Saturday, Jon Carlisle, spokesman for the Massachusetts Highway Department, said engineers were in the roof of the connector and tunnel on Saturday determining where certain types of ceiling hangings systems would be acceptable for use.

``We've had around-the-clock presence there," he said, noting that the engineers would not have been visible to observers looking at the mouths of the connector and tunnel.

But the memo indicated agencies planned to halt work while officials were attempting to determine which remedial plan to pursue.

``No significant remedial construction activities performed [Friday], pending resolution [of] engineering issues and agreement on an approved plan for ceiling hanger retrofit," the memo says.

``Due to the duress the team has been under and the lack of an approved remedial design, the joint team, MTA [Massachusetts Turnpike Authority], MHD [Massachusetts Highway Department], EOTC [state Executive Office of Transportation and Construction], FHWA [Federal Highway Administration], and contractors decided to take the weekend off, to conserve cost and human resources for the construction push anticipated next week upon design approval."

Carlisle, asked about the memo yesterday, said consultants and engineers were in the tunnels on Saturday, but that no one worked on the site yesterday.

``But just because there is a less physical presence at the site doesn't mean there is a diminished determination to get the tunnels opened safely as soon as possible."

Carlisle added that John Cogliano , the state transportation secretary, was at work in his office yesterday.

Sean P. Murphy can be reached at smurphy@globe.com.