Baltimore Harbor Tunnel 50th Anniversary

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/traffic/bal-te.md.tunnel21nov21,0,3979497.story

"Harbor Tunnel marks 50th anniversary"
_Baltimore Sun_ - November 21, 2007
Excerpts:

'Fifty years ago, the infamous "Baltimore bottleneck" was unplugged.'

'On the day after Thanksgiving in 1957, Gov. Theodore R. McKeldin opened
the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel. No more would motorists traveling between
Washington and New York or Boston have to inch their way stoplight by
stoplight - 51 by one account - through the streets of Baltimore.'

'At the time there were no Beltway and no Interstate 95. The main
routes through the city were U.S. 1 and U.S. 40. On a good day, a lucky
driver might make the slog through town in 45 minutes. On a bad day, it
could take more than an hour.'

'With the tunnel, for the price of 40 cents, the weary traveler could
drive his shiny new Edsel from U.S. 1 in Elkridge to U.S. 40 and Erdman
Avenue in a mere 17 minutes. Big trucks paid a princely 85 cents. The
Evening Sun tested the tunnel and found it shaved 27 minutes off the
travel time and saved almost a gallon of gas compared with one of the
most-used routes through the city.'

'The four-lane tunnel and thruway, designated Interstate 895 during the
1980s, may not seem like a marvel now. Since 1985, the eight-lane Fort
McHenry Tunnel has carried almost twice the volume of traffic. The
Francis Scott Key Bridge, opened in 1977, offers a dramatic view. At
times the thruway south of the tunnel seems almost deserted.'

'But at its opening, the tunnel between Canton and Fairfield was a
monumental breakthrough for Maryland transportation and a symbol of the
engineering derring-do of the 1950s.'

'"The tunnel transforms one of the most difficult cities through which
to drive into one of the easiest," McKeldin was quoted as saying at the
Nov. 29 dedication in an article by The Evening Sun's Donald Hirzel.'

'The tunnel was a monumental challenge - the longest twin-tube trench
tunnel in the world when it opened. The cost was $144 million for the
17.6-mile project, including the 1.7-mile tunnel and its approaches. To
replicate it today would likely cost several billion dollars.'

'The need for a harbor crossing had been agreed upon since the 1920s,
but officials wrangled for decades over what to build - a bridge or a
tunnel - and where.'
.....

'The harbor crossing was built using the "cut and cover" technique -
already a proven method. The builders dredged a deep ditch under the
Patapsco River's 50-foot-deep shipping channel.'

'After the trench was dug, the builders submerged 21 300-foot sections
of two enormous tubes, fabricated at shipyards in the region and towed
to the site by tugboat.'

'According to Miller, the tube sections, sealed at both ends by metal
bulkheads, were carefully fitted together. Once they were joined, the
bulkheads were removed by welders.'

See the URL for the rest of the article.

--
Scott M. Kozel Highway and Transportation History Websites
Virginia/Maryland/Washington, D.C. http://www.roadstothefuture.com
Capital Beltway Projects http://www.capital-beltway.com
Philadelphia and Delaware Valley http://www.pennways.com
.

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