Commuter alert: Sumner Tunnel will NOT be closed for work this weekend

BOSTON — The planned closure of the Sumner Tunnel this weekend will not happen as planned.

MassDOT now says the tunnel will be open from June 17 through June 19th “for Juneteenth holiday travel.”

The effect of the first closure of the tunnel last weekend resulted in many complaints by travelers attempting to leave Logan Airport and from taxis and ride-share drivers trying to get them to their destinations.

Governor Charlie Baker defended the work as necessary earlier in the week and indicated it will continue as planned.

The Sumner was scheduled to be closed every weekend, starting last weekend, for a total of 36 weeks.

“The Sumner Tunnel is going to be a fairly long and extensive project because no one did anything about it for a very long period of time,” said Baker on Tuesday. “We constantly talked to the city, we talked to folks in East Boston, we talked to the folks on the city side of the tunnel, and to the extent that we can make adjustments to deal with some of the issues around disruption in traffic, we will. But the work’s got to get done.”

On Thursday, MassDOT announced its change in plans for the upcoming weekend.

In addition to the Juneteenth holiday, people are flying into Boston from across the country for the US Open golf championship being held at The Country Club in Brookline this weekend. There is also the potential of fans coming into the city on Sunday to go to restaurants and bars to watch the Celtics play a game 7 of the NBA Finals, which would take place in San Francisco, should the Celtics prevail Thursday night in game 6.

MassDOT had previously posted that work this weekend would include.

• Installation of flow fill into plenums under box section (both Boston and East Boston ends)
• Concrete chipping for wall repairs. Work will be limited to between the vent buildings, in the circular section of the tunnel. All concrete chipping work will begin after 7 a.m. to comply with the noise requirements
• Electrical work at East Boston boat walls (relocate existing utilities)

That work this weekend is now on hold.

Here is a timeline of the project provided by MassDOT.

Spring 2022 to Spring 2023: Weekend closures

The Sumner Tunnel will be closed on weekends from Spring 2022 to Spring 2023. During this time, traffic will be diverted through other routes.

May 2023 to September 2023: Full closure

The Sumner Tunnel will be closed seven days a week from May 2023 to September 2023. During this time, traffic will be diverted through other routes.

Fall 2023 to Winter 2023: Weekend closures

The Sumner Tunnel will be closed on weekends from Fall 2023 to Winter 2023. During this time, traffic will be diverted through other routes.

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