Overview
The United States Coast Guard is responsible for enacting and enforcing the regulations of the Chelsea Street Bridge, including the requirement to lift to 175’ and open on-demand for all vessels. MassDOT is responsible for managing the operations of the Bridge including safely operating the lifts and managing roadway traffic for all users.
The reconstruction of the Chelsea Street Bridge in 2012 was critical for the safe operations of waterway users as the old bridge was too narrow. The new Bridge has a longer lift cycle time and Bridge traffic is greater with new bus service, creating longer delays and congestion on the surrounding roadways.
Real time resources for trip planning
Since the Bridge must continue to open on-demand, MassDOT is working with the waterway and roadway communities to improve the predictability of bridge lifts and communicate lift times to the public in advance to enable better trip planning. Starting on July 8, 2019, you will be able to receive notification of the date and time of anticipated bridge lifts by:
- On-road Variable Message Boards which display the next three anticipated lift times
- Massport Twitter via @LogantoChelsea both real-time and 2-hour advance notice
- MBTA T-Alerts for near-real-time bus route delays and detours
Please Note:
- All advance times are subject to change depending on weather and other conditions at sea
- The Bridge will continue to open On-Demand for vessels
- This is a Pilot Program and will change based on findings
- MassDOT will continue to improve the messaging and operations of the Bridge and as such we need you to send your feedback on the advanced notification program