While all is quiet these days with Dulles Rail, though there are probably backroom deals being made out of public sight, it's interesting to note this article in The New York Times about the Big Dig in Boston. As we already know, Bechtel ran up the price to make this the most expensive public works project in U.S. history. No doubt it will happen with rail through Tysons, too. But the article's premise is interesting in that the public is looking forward to fully utilizing the space that the overhead highway previously occupied. Parks, fountains, museums and other places are planned.
Why? Because the hulking overhead highway was an eyesore that divided the city and made pedestrian access nearly impossible.
So why is a hulking, overhead structure the preferred option in Tysons again? Has anyone learned enough lessons from Boston both about the final cost of Bechtel's mess and then why the whole project was needed in the first place?