From north to south:
Railroad: (Bridge Hunter broke Mar 22, 2023; Satellite) 1858Wilcox: (Satellite) 1932
The pedestrian walkway on the left side is just 2' wide.
In 2011, the city estimated that it would cost $42m to build a better tunnel. [local3news] The current tunnel is 24' (7.3m) wide, 9'6' (3m) tall with just a 2' (0.6m) wide sidewalk and no bike path. The proposed tunnel would be 41' (12.5m) wide, 16.5' (5m) tall with a 5' (1.5m) sidewalk and a 5' (1.5m) bike path. [TimesFreePress-adding]
I learned about the railroad tunnel while studying the Missionary Ridge train ride of the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum. And while researching that railroad tunnel, I found some vehicle tunnels under the Missionary Ridge.
TVRM/Southern Railroad
Some of the train rides are pulled by steam locomotives.
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| Jim Pearson Southern Railway steam locomotive 630 at Missionary Ridge Tunnel September 9, 2017 - Southern Railway steam locomotive 630 heads into the west end of Missionary Ridge Tunnel with a loaded passenger train during the 2017 Railfest at Tennessee Valley Railway Museum, as it heads for the station at East Chattanooga, Tennessee. By the way, I love long lenses!!! Completed in 1858 the tunnel is the primary reason TVRM runs on the three-mile section of the former Southern Railway. As railroad equipment grew too large to pass through and the single-track tunnel became a traffic jam for an otherwise double-track railroad, Southern Railway abandoned the three mile portion of the line and built a new section around the end of Missionary Ridge, avoiding the tunnel altogether. The museum restored rails through the tunnel in 1971 and continues to use the pre-Civil War Tunnel on a daily basis. |
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| 2:34 video @ 0:22 |
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| 2:34 video @ 2:12 |
Wilcox, 1932
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| Street View, May 2022, East Portal Even rental trucks probably need to avoid this tunnel. I found a 9'6" (2.9m) clearance sign. |
In 2011, the city estimated that it would cost $42m to build a better tunnel. [local3news] The current tunnel is 24' (7.3m) wide, 9'6' (3m) tall with just a 2' (0.6m) wide sidewalk and no bike path. The proposed tunnel would be 41' (12.5m) wide, 16.5' (5m) tall with a 5' (1.5m) sidewalk and a 5' (1.5m) bike path. [TimesFreePress-adding]
Instead, in 2015 they closed the tunnel for almost a year to do a facelift. ("The substantial renovations to the tunnel include safety improvements, major lighting upgrades and a new inner tunnel liner to halt water seepage into the tunnel.") [chattanooga]
Do the "safety improvements" include venhilation? Nope. The saftey improvment is a better pedestrian railing. "Once again, the city is applying for federal grant money to build a second tunnel, but officials say the chances of that happening are slim." [Feb 24, 2015 0:23 video] This video calls this 1932 tunnel the area's oldest tunnel. I've seen other sources claim that as well. But at least the first tube of the other tunnels are older, so I'm confused.
The $1.33m project may have had a $101,966 cost overrun. [TimesFreePress-increase]
McCallie, 1913+1956
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| Street View, May 2022, West Portal |
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| Streert View, Sep 2015, East Portal |
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| 1 of 2 construction photos in TimesFreePress The first tube was opened in 1913. The second tube opened in 1956 and was 932' (284m) long. |
Bachman Tunnels, 1921
I got a date of 1921 before I hit a paywall. [TimesFreePress-bachman]
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| Street View, Apr 2022, West Portal |
They have a longer cut on this side.
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| Street View, May 2019, East Portal |
And they had a landslide in 2021.
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| 3:09 video @ 1:17 |
When the interstate was closed, not all of the trucks that were rerouted could fit through this 11' clearance.
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| 2:16 video @ 1:14 |
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