MassDOT announces that it's narrowing the turnpike to two lanes in each direction this weekend from where the Allston tolls used to be to the Beacon Street overpass as a test of "traffic logistics" for the major changes that will start in July as contractors begin to replace the deteriorating Commonwealth Avenue bridge. Read more.
The Board of Appeal narrowly voted today to reject a 14-by-48-foot electronic billboard towering above the Massachusetts Turnpike after residents said they wanted fewer billboards, not more, especially not the sort that one resident said would be "glaring through my back windows." Read more.
Why should T riders have all the fun? Roving UHub photographer Sean Owen reports car traffic being slowed to a crawl out by 128 this morning thanks to a slow-moving Green Line trolley (no doubt on its way to upstate New York to be refurbished).
State Police report stopping this guy on the turnpike in Weston today, add:
Don't be that guy ...
At 10 p.m. on Friday, the last toll will be collected by hand somewhere along the turnpike and the new electronic system gets turned on. Read more.
Dana Worby-Robinson had plenty of time to photograph these two trucks completely blocking a ramp to 495 from the turnpike westbound around 9 a.m. She reports:
One was broken down in lane and other tried to get around him. By doing so he got stuck.
WBZ reports on the arrest this morning in Newton of the suspect in yesterday's State Police cruiser heist in South Boston.
A Jamaica Plain man is suing the state Department of Transportation over what he says is the way Massachusetts Turnpike rest areas are not fully usable by people with handicaps. Read more.
Dr. Ed spotted this tipped-over trailer at the Allston/Cambridge exit on the turnpike shortly after 1 p.m., with what appeared to be dry ice just evaporating.
UPDATE Around 5:20 p.m., Johnny I reported a crew was still scooping up the dry ice.
Remains of the car in Newton Corner. Photo by Wendingo.
Traffic was backed up for miles after a car caught fire at the height of rush hour westbound, just past Newton Corner.
Vicki the roving UHub photographer wasn't doing much roving on the turnpike in Natick this afternoon when turkeys began turkeying all over the place, bringing traffic on both sides to a complete halt.
She did get a brief glimpse of one of the walking Butterballs by the Jersey barriers as she inched forward westbound.
Betherie, meanwhile, had a ringside seat for the capture of one of the birds: Read more.
The remains of the bus. Photo by Westboro FD.
State Police report the bus, an unmarked charter carrying 50 people, burst into flames on the turnpike westbound in Southboro at the Westboro line. Everybody got out safely; no immediate word on the status of luggage.
State officials say they've had to push back replacement of the aging Comm. Ave. bridge over the turnpike by a year because of design mistakes by an engineering firm working on the project.
The delay, however, means the state is increasing the number of open lanes in each direction on the turnpike under the bridge from three to four lanes. Read more.
Michael Kieloch shows us why the traffic getting off the turnpike at Allston/Cambridge is so slow this afternoon.
George shows us what it was like on the Mass. Turnpike outbound around 11:45 this morning.
State Police report a bus flamed out westbound on the Massachusetts Turnpike in Framingham around 9 a.m. There were no injuries and traffic wasn't really much affected, even with two closed lanes, because few people have anywhere to go westbound on the Pike at 9 a.m. on a Sunday - except the people in the bus, for whom another bus was brought in so they could continue on their way.
The Dig posts a first-person account by somebody who was on that New York-to-Boston bus that didn't quite make it to Boston yesterday:
The Rosie Perez circa-1988-sounding driver tried to tell everyone that an alarm was going off, and that a mechanic was going to have to check the bus out. We were told it could take anywhere from five minutes to a half hour. This was around 1:40 pm.
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