BOSTON (WHDH) - City and state leaders headed into the Sumner Tunnel Wednesday to tour the tunnel ahead of its expected reopening on Friday after a nearly two-month shutdown for repairs.
The Sumner Tunnel closed on July 5 to make way for rehab work on the tunnel, including the addition of a new ventilation system, 500 new lights and new fireproof boards on walls.
Weeks after the closure Gov. Maura Healey this week thanked crews working on the project as well as commuters impacted by the tunnel shutdown.
“It’s not easy when you tell folks that we’re going to shut down an entire tunnel, a main throughway, a gateway to the city for a two month period,” Healey told reporters. “But I really appreciate people’s patience with our efforts.”
The 88-year-old Sumner Tunnel serves as a link between downtown Boston and East Boston. Its extended closure prompted major traffic concerns and a corresponding series of mitigation efforts by city and state officials.
With the tunnel now set to reopen, regular fare collection is scheduled to resume across the MBTA system after it was suspended for some transit modes to help ease traffic congestion related to the tunnel shutdown.
Massachusetts Department of Transportation Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver said recent upgrades to the tunnel will make the space “feel more open” and safer.
“The ventilation system means more clean air throughout the tunnel for drivers as they’re going on their way,” Gulliver said.
Despite recent work, though, the Sumner Tunnel is still slated to close again for a series of upcoming weekend shutdowns. Another full closure is scheduled to take place in July and August of next year.
Officials had not determined the exact schedule of needed weekend closures as of Wednesday but said they only plan to conduct two closures per month.
In the meantime, the tunnel is scheduled to reopen from its current shutdown at 5 a.m. on Friday.
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