BOSTON -- There are more problems surfacing related to the Big Dig leaks, as allegations have arisen that the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority knew about construction problems in the Liberty Tunnel for years.

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Gail Huff Reports On Big Dig

NewsCenter 5's Gail Huff reported that there may be evidence that an engineer alerted the Turnpike Authority about problems as long as three years ago.

When water came pouring through the wall in the northbound section of Interstate 93 near South Station in September, Big Dig officials seemed surprised. But according to reports in the Boston Globe, there were letters dating back to December 2001 warning that the wall was substandard and leaking. A drawing even showed the problem area.

But Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Chairman Matthew J. Amorello claimed that officials didn't know about the leak until two months ago. But the problems with the tunnel section were described in a letter from contractor Modern Continental to the Turnpike Authority's John J. Wright, who oversaw construction of the northbound tunnel and is now deputy project manager.

Now officials are asking: If engineers were warmed about the problem three years ago, why weren't they fixed and who is responsible for repair costs now?

The documents show that when the leak -- apparently caused by debris such as sand and clay -- was discovered in 2001, it was patched rather than repoured and rebuilt.

Earlier this week, Amorello insisted private contractors would pay -- not taxpayers.

"There will be no cost to the taxpayers or tollpayers for this work. And you can be assured that this issue will be pursued vigorously by the Turnpike Authority's cost recovery team," Amorello said.

Turnpike officials issued a statement Thursday saying even if they had been notified of the leak, it was the responsibility of the contractor to fix the problem.

"(It's) the resident engineers and the field offices (of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff) that are responsible for tracking and closing out all deficiencies discovered during construction. The bottom line is that the repair that was performed on this slurry wall was insufficient," the Turnpike Authority statement said.

Now, Gov. Mitt Romney is renewing his efforts to put the Turnpike Authority under state control via the Massachusetts Highway Department, and U.S. Rep. Marty Meehan is promising an investigation in Washington, while state Attorney General Tom Reilly is promising answers.

"A big question in our mind is, who knew what and when," Reilly said.

All of this in the wake of revelations by independent engineers that there may be as many as 400 leaks in the $14.6 billion tunnel system which will cost millions more to repair and could take 10 years to fix.

The Big Dig, formally called the Central Artery/Third Harbor Tunnel project, replaced the elevated Central Artery of Interstate 93 with underground tunnels through downtown Boston. It also connected Interstate 90, the Massachusetts Turnpike, to Logan International Airport, and added the Ted Williams Tunnel beneath Boston Harbor.