It's all brake lights and long backups on the roads detouring drivers around the Sumner Tunnel closure.
The routes leading to both the Ted Williams Tunnel and the Tobin Bridge into Boston were bumper to bumper once again for Wednesday morning's commute. One week into the two-month shutdown and drivers in Eastie are getting the hang of it, but they're no less frustrated.
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"Today is day number two for taking the baby to day care," said Phillip Young of East Boston. "I have to go from here to Cambridge, so it's a trek."
Young said he was driving his 15-month-old son Ciel so his wife can get to work on time in the Seaport District: "Usually it's mom that has to take him to day care, and she's been stressing trying to plan how she's actually going to be able to do it."
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And if you think that's a tricky commute, we found another East Boston dad possibly even more stressed about the massive slow-downs due to the Sumner closure.
"What really is nerve-wracking for us is I have a baby coming, due Aug. 4, so we've already considered whenever she starts to go into labor that we're going to have to probably rent a hotel near Mass. General," Jeff Slemmer said.
If they don't do that, the expecting parents worry, they might deliver their baby girl while stuck in a major traffic jam.
It's "usually, what, a 15-minute drive?" Slemmer said, "And it could be an hour and a half now."
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Transportation officials have warned that the busiest days for commuters are going to be Tuesdays through Thursdays, especially now that people are back from vacation.
A lot of the traffic coming through the Ted Williams Tunnel is from Logan International Airport, and although the bulk of the problem is getting from East Boston to the city, there is a domino effect that can impact Interstate 93 and the Mass. Pike.
The closure of the nearly century-old Sumner Tunnel allows for necessary repairs. It's been closing on weekends but the July 5-Aug. 31 closure will allow for an accelerated timeline.
