Here's the mayor's statement:

I worked to give the public a direct vote on the tunnel. The public said move ahead with the tunnel, and that's what we're going to do.

Let me just say: Nobody—absolutely nobody—could be more delighted that we can stop debating the tunnel than me. I was ready to dig it myself with a spork. So much cheaper! When the tunnel's done, it will be an overpriced monument to bad urban planning, true, but it's the overpriced monument to bad urban planning that folks wanted (at least after they watched a half-million dollar ad campaign for it). So I hope it turns out well—that it doesn't become a construction boondoggle, that the state secures its funding, that the city finds money for its share, that all the extra traffic it creates is mitigated, that the port comes up with its dough, etc. It's quite a to-do list for the tunnel supporters.

They've promised that they can pull it off without a hitch and without cost overruns—I hope they're right.