Maybe it's just because we're from Detroit, Michigan, a land with two seasons — winter and construction — but we thought Boston's notorious "Big Dig" was already over. Seriously, we were just there in May and despite a few areas with some construction, we really thought the nation's most complex and costly highway project, was already done diggered. Apparently not. The AP is telling us when the clock runs out on 2007, Boston will officially mark the end of the $14.8 billion multi-decade "Big Dig" project. But don't worry, despite the cessation of federal and state funding, the lawsuits will still go on...
...over last year's death of a motorist crushed by falling concrete panels. Civil and criminal cases stemming from the July 2006 tunnel ceiling collapse continue, though on Monday the family of Milena Del Valle announced a $6 million settlement with Powers Fasteners, the company that manufactured the epoxy blamed by investigators for the accident. Lawsuits are pending against other Big Dig contractors, and Powers Fasteners still faces a manslaughter indictment. But, at least December 31st marks the end of the joint venture that teamed contractor Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff with the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority — and gave us the worst traffic of the century. [AP via Digg]