No Plans to Raise Overpass Hit by Bus: MassDOT

February 5, 2013

Massachusetts Department of Transportation officials say there are no plans to raise the height of a Boston overpass during scheduled repairs next year, despite an accident that injured 35 people from Pennsylvania over the weekend and similar mishaps.

The Calvary Coach bus slammed into the 10-foot-high bridge Saturday night. One person was critically injured and several others were hospitalized. The group included high school students and chaperones who were part of a Destined for a Dream Foundation group based in Bristol, Pa.

MassDOT spokeswoman Sara Lavoie told the Boston Herald the 89-year-old Western Avenue overpass on Soldiers Field Road can’t be raised during next year’s rehabilitation project because of road elevation issues and the bridge’s historic nature.

State lawmakers are among those calling for the bridge to be raised.