This tweet:
How it started… How it’s going… pic.twitter.com/SWrEfE68Ve
— Kris H (@NetwerkBear) October 11, 2020
Read More (way more):
Yesterday (Sunday) was on Twitter, and I made a few of these “How it started.. How it’s going”. And then I thought.. why not the Big Dig for laughs. So I did, and tagged a few people in it. (one being Universal Hub who.. if he retweets you. woooosh.)
And as expected, it took off. I was only expecting to get maybe 500 likes. The pics are bad (see below) and you’d only really get it if you were a local. But as I write this at 6pm on 10/12 (Monday), it has over 4.8k likes and growing. (still a rapid like every few seconds)
I really wanted to do one of the old double decker over the Charles with traffic, and the new Zakim bridge with traffic also because traffic is actually worse (statistically) than it was before.
I mean the Big Dig did serve a purpose, the old elevated expressway was built in the 1950s and could only carry 55k cars/day, but by 1999 was handling over 125k cars/day. The Central
Artery/Tunnel project can handle close to 200k.. in 2003 when it opened. It now nearly is at capacity.
It also was riddled with issues such as the panel collapse, some flooding issues, substantial concrete, cost overruns, and it took forever.
Yet this tweet has attracted lots of people from other cities with ugly expressways to cover them. Its like all the issues we had with the big dig just magically went away 20 years later. (The first section opened in 2002). Too funny.
But it served its purpose, and downtown is so much better without the ugly elevated expressway.
But YEAH… this really took off, here’s the analytics. amazing.. (sorry for a small time tweeter this is exciting!). Nearly a 1/2 million impressions (times people saw tweet), 101k media clicks (means people actually clicked on each picture. Almost 4k profile clicks!!
Its just nice to be recognized I guess. :p
But here’s some examples of the tweets. It was fun waking up this morning (Monday), nearly 22 hours from when I first tweeted this, and to see all the responses from across the world. Who knew some park that replaced an expressway would generate (and continue to as I write) such interest.
Even if you’re one of ~those people~ who doesn’t like Boston, you have to admit this is a fucking serve https://t.co/GZXOGLykLY
— Merle Oberon (@anordinarydayy) October 12, 2020
this is the dream holy shit https://t.co/FP7bVdCBUM
— gab (new) #OUSTDUTERTE (@gdsadicon) October 12, 2020
Major infrastructure projects are worth the investment, even if the project goes WAY over budget.
Exhibit A: the Big Dig was worth every penny, and then some. https://t.co/hdWdWplwe2
— Math & Hoops 617 (@CoachD617) October 11, 2020
Now this is what is a much needed city transformation. Less space for cars and more for public is the need of hour. Robust public transport is the way to go. #citybeautiful https://t.co/tJxNzLUAqY
— Dikshant (@dknewstrt) October 12, 2020
Despite how expensive it was, the Big Dig was worth it. People barely remember how much it went over budget and all these days. https://t.co/XR7rQPl3IN
— Alexander Dukes (@alxcharlesdukes) October 12, 2020
Atlanta:
@KeishaBottoms this could be The Stitch in Atlanta! https://t.co/mWqT7K0AUg
— Jordan Howard (@JordanAHoward) October 12, 2020
Cincinnati:
#Cincinnati. It is my goal to do something similar or better with Ft. Washington Way. Do you agree?! What would you like to see on those 4 capped rectangles? https://t.co/0H6tz5uPxx
— Derek Bauman (@derekbauman) October 12, 2020
Pittsburg:
This should be the Crosstown Expressway (I-579) in Pittsburgh—or any number of other urban freeways—except we should actually be demolishing these entirely from now on, instead of spending the equivalent of Iceland’s GDP to hide the same traffic underground! https://t.co/V0DNf9Uc68
— Liam O’Connell (@liameoconnell) October 12, 2020
DC:
TEAR DOWN DC’S SE FREEWAY AND PUT THIS IN ITS PLACE https://t.co/wYOuFNOxRc
— Willy T (@wllytrwck) October 11, 2020
Balitmore:
We should do this in Baltimore https://t.co/6HBJEyojXP
— connor (@connor_guercio) October 11, 2020
Austin:
the big dig has no shortage of problems but it would be cool if we did something like this with i35 https://t.co/aVYutp0MdY
— hiker biker (@nvironmntcarol) October 11, 2020
Seattle:
Let’s do it in Seattle! https://t.co/cULVjekOwf
— Rian Watt (@rianwatt) October 11, 2020
Chicago:
If Boston can do it, so can @Chicago https://t.co/k0G9aqMadp
— Milwaukee Ave Bike Lane (@MilwaukeeAvBike) October 11, 2020
I got alot of replies from people in both in LA and San Francisco
😍
Imagine this capping the 101 Freeway through Hollywood and the 10 Freeway near Arlington https://t.co/W3sCzfR4ZR
— Streets For All (@streetsforall) October 12, 2020
speaking of, why do we have a stub of the 280 that parallels the 101/80 in SF? we should probably tear that down https://t.co/2JuUg8l93n
— Prop 15 stan account (@james94_SF) October 12, 2020
I know that most people aren’t ready to imagine this treatment for the 405 or the 10, but let’s talk about the 90 . . . https://t.co/zDXlMOUmSS
— Alex “Yes on Measure RE, No on B” Fisch (@AlexFischCC) October 12, 2020
Do 280 in SF next! 🥺 https://t.co/JdYTivRx4c
— David “No on 22” Smith (@Catfish_Man) October 11, 2020
This could be Oakland’s 980 if people got serious about the climate emergency. https://t.co/xcFqvlf2Bv
— 𝔇𝔞𝔯𝔯𝔢𝔩𝔩 🍫 𝔒𝔴𝔢𝔫𝔰 (@IDoTheThinking) October 11, 2020
Could be the 280… https://t.co/j2ZBdsIswL
— Neighbors for Tearing Down the I-280 Spur (@280TeardownSF) October 11, 2020
And as far away as Indonesia:
Kaya maen city: skyline tapi di dunia nyata. Indonesia besok bisa yok! https://t.co/PUl39PNrs2
— Fadholi Rahmat M (@FadholiRM) October 12, 2020
and Manila. (kinda surprised they don’t already..)
Meanwhile in Manila we’re removing parks to build more elevated expressways 🤡🤡🤡 https://t.co/dhIzvyywaz
— James (@JeimarsonP) October 12, 2020
Let’s do this! Cebu and Manila! https://t.co/0mqGPIkLya
— Magic Sherep (@putongngoso) October 12, 2020
Ugh.. Manila when https://t.co/qP6259I24U
— aloveyoutoo (@ALOveyoutoo) October 12, 2020
And so many more.
And of course the people who thought this was SimCity…
This SimCity Player is getting better at the game and also got a new monitor. https://t.co/YAVhmBBz91
— Maxwell, Earth’s Ray Donovan (@Maxwell_Burke) October 12, 2020
Whenever I get this far in SimCity, as soon as you add the casinos that’s when the monsters show up
— Mike Henry 😈 👽 (@mikehenry) October 12, 2020
And so many more.. its now at 4.8K likes as I finish up. I see this getting to at least 7K before it winds down. Who knows 🙂 stay tuned.