The Big Dig

Two Planes Are Off The Radar

September 11th changed the world forever; but in particular, it changed airports. In this special episode of The Big Dig, we go inside the world of Logan Airport – the pl

The Staten Island Problem

How do these things all connect: Wu-Tang Clan, Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump, and the largest garbage dump in the world? That story is the subject of a new series from the

Your Ultimate Big Dig Roadtrip Playlist

Our show now has three seasons in the feed, and it just dawned on Ian that every topic we’ve covered also happens to be a rich topic in American song: highways, gambling,

Highway Teardown Tour | 11. Boston, MA

The final chapter of the Big Dig story is what happened to the land after the highway was gone. Like the rest of the project, it was messy, and other cities would be wise

Highway Teardown Tour | 10. Providence, RI

The Big Dig in Boston was a fluke, a unicorn, something we may never see again. But there are simpler and cheaper ways to rethink our urban highways – Providence, RI trie

Highway Teardown Tour | 9. Philadelphia, PA

Even as cities try to heal the damage of the interstate era, we are also continuing to expand our urban highways, continuing to turn parks and neighborhoods into new lane

Highway Teardown Tour | 8. Baltimore, MD

This episode is about a very different kind of teardown – one that came suddenly, tragically, and without warning. But within this utterly unique story there are some uni

Highway Teardown Tour | 7. Louisville, KY

In the stories we tell about public works, there is a constant bias towards the projects that actually happened, but it’s the apparently ‘failed’ projects that can often

Highway Teardown Tour | 6. Portland, OR

The anti-highway movement, like any movement, has always been a coalition. Different people with different backgrounds and different interests finding a common cause. But

Highway Teardown Tour | 5. Seattle, WA

There is exactly one other American city crazy enough to attempt anything like what Boston did with The Big Dig. That city is Seattle, and they are not done tearing down

Highway Teardown Tour | 4. Austin, TX

How did the Austin City Council find themselves locked in a ‘death match’ over what to do about Interstate 35? Two councilors and two journalists talk through the fraught

Highway Teardown Tour | 3. Rochester, NY

Once the highway is gone, can the divisions these structures created actually be healed? Can the people on either side become neighbors again? Rochester, NY is trying to

Highway Teardown Tour | 2. Syracuse, NY

Is it possible to re-write the Interstate map and send highways around cities instead of through them? Syracuse, NY is doing just that.  Guests: Marie Therese Dominguez,

Highway Teardown Tour | 1. New York, NY

What to do with the BQE? It’s a one of a kind highway in desperate need of repair, but no one can agree how to fix it.  Guests: Polly Trottenberg, Lara Birnback, Stephen

Highway Teardown Tour | Enter Here

Every American city is divided by crumbling old highways. Every city is trying to figure out what to do with them. But even if the problems with these structures are obvi

In search of the perfect lobster roll

In the 1980s, six women on an island off the coast of Massachusetts began selling lobster rolls as a church fundraiser. Today, people travel by car, boat, and plane just

What you need to know when buying fish, with Roger Berkowitz

Buying fish can be a puzzling process. It comes frozen and fresh, wild and farmed, from many different countries, and with all kinds of ratings and labels. So what does i

Have we entered a new era for government regulation?

John Vecchione represented a group of fishermen who challenged government regulations all the way to the Supreme Court. Together, they helped overturn the decades-old “Ch

Catching The Codfather | 6. It’s Your Job to Catch Me

A new revelation forces federal investigators to close down the case, fast. But what will taking down The Codfather mean for the port of New Bedford? Major sponsorship f

Catching The Codfather | 5. Painting Fish

When federal agents first meet with Carlos Rafael, the fishing mogul offers up a tantalizing clue: a special system for ‘painting fish.’ It’s the key to understanding the