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List of tunnels in Seattle

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This is a list of tunnels built in the city of Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington.

The Puget Sound region, where Seattle lies, has a history of glaciation that has left many hills and ridges that civil engineers have needed to traverse for transportation and utilities.[1] Some of these tunnels are part of megaprojects.

Tunnels

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Year(s) Constructed Tunnel Diameter Length Notes References
1894 Lake Union Sewer Tunnel 72 in (1.8 m) 5,736 ft (1,748 m) Hand excavated [1]
1894 South Bayview Street Tunnel 4 ft (1.2 m) x 6 ft (1.8 m) 4,526 ft (1,380 m) Hand excavated [1]
1903–1905 Great Northern Tunnel 38 ft (12 m) 5,141 ft (1,567 m) Hand excavated [1]
1907 Oregon and Washington Railroad Tunnel 38 ft (12 m) 900 ft (270 m) Hand excavated; never completed (filled in 1922) [1]
1910 First Avenue Utilidor Tunnel 8 ft (2.4 m) 300 ft (91 m) Compressed air, hand [1]
1910 4th and Connecticut Ave. Sewer 3–6 ft (0.91–1.83 m) 7,060 ft (2,150 m) Supported trench [1]
1910 Ravenna Sewer Tunnel 80 in (2.0 m)
Relined 66 in (1.7 m)
2,875 ft (876 m) Hand; tried tunnel boring machine [1]
Early 1900s Wallingford Tunnel 9 ft (2.7 m) 1,803 ft (550 m) Open cut and tunnel [1]
Early 1900s Pacific Street Tunnel 9 ft (2.7 m) 11,325 ft (3,452 m) Open cut and tunnel [1]
1910 Lander Street Sewer 4.5–9 ft (1.4–2.7 m) 5,290 ft (1,610 m) Supported trench [1]
1911 Fort Lawton Tunnel 10 ft (3.0 m) 9,720 ft (2,960 m) Hand dug [1]
1911 Montlake Siphon Tunnel 4 ft (1.2 m) 2,005 ft (611 m) Hand dug [1]
1912 Dexter and 8th Avenue Tunnel 5 ft (1.5 m) 9,315 ft (2,839 m) Hand dug [1]
1912 Washington Park Tunnels 5 ft (1.5 m) 4,052 ft (1,235 m) Hand dug [1]
1913 Third Avenue West Siphon Tunnel 21 ft (6.4 m) 500 ft (150 m) Hand dug [1]
1926 Jackson Street Drainage Tunnel 4 ft × 6 ft (1.2 m × 1.8 m) 1,500 feet (460 m) Hand dug
35 psi compressed air
[1]
1930 South Hanford Street Tunnel 9 ft (2.7 m) 6,055 ft (1,846 m) Hand dug [1]
1931 Charleston Street Tunnel 3.5 ft (1.1 m) 2,830 ft (860 m) [1]
1936 Henderson Trunk Sewer Tunnel 60 in (1.5 m) (I.D., concrete)
48 in (1.2 m) (brick)
3,000 ft (910 m) Hand dug
Concrete and brick
[1]
1936 Laurelhurst Trunk Sewer Tunnel 9 ft (2.7 m) 1,850 ft (560 m) [1]
1938–1941 Mount Baker Tunnel 28 ft × 23 ft (8.5 m × 7.0 m) 1,330 ft (410 m) [1]
1934–1942 WPA slide control drainage projects 4 ft × 6 ft (1.2 m × 1.8 m) 4,926 ft (1,501 m) [1]
1952–1954 Battery Street Tunnel 3,140 ft (960 m) Originally named Battery Street Subway [2][3]
1963 Montlake Siphon Tunnel replacements 42 in × 108 in (1.1 m × 2.7 m) 586 ft (179 m) [1]
1965–1966 Elliott Bay Interceptor section 6 tunnel 8 ft × 12.5 ft (2.4 m × 3.8 m) 1,750 feet (530 m) Tunnelling shield [1]
1964–1967 Lake City Sewer Tunnel 8 ft × 11 ft (2.4 m × 3.4 m) 17,570 feet (5,360 m) Close-face wheel excavator [1]
1967–1968 Second Avenue Sewer Tunnel 8.5 ft × 12.5 ft (2.6 m × 3.8 m) 19,900 feet (6,100 m) Tunnelling shield [1]
1960s to present University of Washington utilidors Various, 5–10 ft (1.5–3.0 m) 50,000 feet (15,000 m) total [1][4]
1975 Northwest Kidney Center pedestrian tunnel 10 ft (3.0 m) horseshoe 120 ft (37 m) Bobcat loader [1]
1983–1986 Mount Baker Tunnel expansion 65 ft (20 m) 1,330 ft (410 m) Tunnelling shield
World's largest diameter soil tunnel
[1]
1984 Seattle Public Utilities Beacon Hill Waterline/Cedar River Pipeline 12 ft (3.7 m) 150 ft (46 m) [1]
1985 Columbia Center pedestrian tunnel 14 ft (4.3 m) horseshoe 280 ft (85 m) [1]
1985 Virginia Mason Hospital pedestrian tunnel 10 ft (3.0 m) horseshoe 120 ft (37 m) Bobcat loader [1]
1986 Renton Sewer Tunnel ETS-4A 12 ft (3.7 m) O.D. 2,403 ft (732 m) Drill and shoot [1]
1986 Renton Sewer Tunnel ETS-4B 12 ft (3.7 m) O.D. 620 ft (190 m) Drill and shoot [1]
1986 Renton Sewer Tunnel ETS-5 12 ft (3.7 m) O.D. 1,820 ft (550 m) Drill and shoot [1]
1986 Renton Sewer Tunnel ETS-6 12 ft (3.7 m) O.D. 1,056 ft (322 m) First use of Earth Pressure Balance Machine in Seattle [1]
1987–1988 Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel Twin 21.25 ft (6.48 m) 13,624 ft (4,153 m) Tunnelling shield
First use of waterproofing PVC membrane in USA
[1]
1990 Fort Lawton Tunnel/West Point Sewer 15.5 ft (4.7 m) O.D. 8,400 feet (2,600 m) Partial Earth Pressure Balance Machine [1][5]
1993 Royal Brougham Street Sewer Tunnel 10 ft (3.0 m) O.D. 300 ft (91 m) [1]
1993 Lake Washington Canal Tunnel 3.3 ft (1.0 m) 1,518 ft (463 m) First slurry microtunnel in Seattle [1]
1995 Lander Street Sewer Tunnel 10 ft (3.0 m) O.D. 130 ft (40 m) [1]
1995 First Avenue Utilidor Tunnel 10 ft (3.0 m) 500 ft (150 m) Microtunnel [1]
1995–1997 West Seattle Sewer Tunnel 13 ft (4.0 m) 10,500 feet (3,200 m) Partial Earth Pressure Balance Machine
Maximum 400 feet (120 m) below surface
[1][5]
1997 Eastlake Storm Sewer Tunnel 3.5 ft (1.1 m) 475 ft (145 m) Slurry microtunnel [1]
2001 Justice Center Tunnel 15 ft (4.6 m) horseshoe 200 ft (61 m) [1]
2002 Denny CSO Storage Tunnel 16.8 ft (5.1 m) O.D. 6,212 ft (1,893 m) First complete Earth Pressure Balance Machine tunnel in Seattle [1][5][6]
2002 Henderson CSO Storage Tunnel 16.8 ft (5.1 m) O.D. 3,105 ft (946 m) Earth Pressure Balance Machine, connecting microtunnels [1][5]
2006 Beacon Hill tunnel Twin 20 ft (6.1 m) 1 mi (1.6 km) Tunnel boring machine [7]
2009–2012 University Link Tunnel Twin 20 ft (6.1 m) 3 mi (4.8 km) Tunnel boring machine
$1.9 billion megaproject
[8][9]
2007–2011 Brightwater Sewage Tunnel 17.5 ft (5.3 m) 13 mi (21 km) Four tunnel boring machines
Maximum depth 400 feet (120 m)
Part of $1.8 billion megaproject
[5][10][11][12]
2013–2018 Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement tunnel 57 feet (17 m) 2 mi (3.2 km) $4.25 billion megaproject
World's largest tunnel boring machine, 57.5 feet (17.5 m) in diameter
[13]
2014–2016 Northgate Link tunnel Twin 20 ft (6.1 m) 3.4 mi (5.5 km) Tunnel boring machine
$2.1 billion megaproject
[14]
2019– King County Ship Canal Water Quality Project 21.67 ft (6.61 m) and 8 ft (2.4 m) 2.7 mi (4.3 km) Largest tunnel boring machine named "Mudhoney" to construct combined sewer outflow storage tunnel under EPA consent decree. Two smaller machines for conveyance tunnels. [15][16]

See also

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Further reading

[edit]
  • Lynda V. Mapes (December 10, 2011), "Tunnels: Seattle's boring past filled with thrills", Pacific Northwest magazine, The Seattle Times, retrieved December 16, 2012

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av Robinson, Robert A.; Cox, Edward; Dirks, Martin (2002), Tunneling in Seattle: A History of Innovation, North American Tunnelling Conference, Seattle, Wash., archived from the original on April 6, 2010, retrieved December 16, 2012
  2. ^ Bridges and roadway structures, Seattle Department of Transportation, retrieved December 17, 2012
  3. ^ Phil Dougherty (April 1, 2007), "Final phase of Seattle's Alaskan Way Viaduct opens to traffic on September 3, 1959", HistoryLink, Seattle: History Ink
  4. ^ Jenny Hansson (September 27, 1995), "The freedom to have a tunnel map", UW Daily, retrieved December 16, 2012
  5. ^ a b c d e 2010 Brightwater Project Progress and Tunneling Status (PDF), King County Waste Treatment Division
  6. ^ Featured Project: Denny Way CSO Control Project, American Underground Construction Association, retrieved December 16, 2012
  7. ^ Mike Lindblom (April 21, 2006), Beacon Hill tunneling a breeze, The Seattle Times
  8. ^ Scott Gutierrez (May 15, 2012), Light rail tunnels now link downtown to Capitol Hill, UW, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
  9. ^ "University Link Extension". Sound Transit. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
  10. ^ Jack Broom (September 8, 2009). "2 tunneling machines on Brightwater sewer project are damaged — and 300 feet deep". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
  11. ^ Scott Gutierez (August 17, 2011). "Brightwater tunneling completed this week". Seattle P-I. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
  12. ^ Jeff Switzer (September 25, 2007), "Machine moves 100 trucks of dirt a day", Everett Herald
  13. ^ Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement program: Tunneling, Washington State Department of Transportation, retrieved December 17, 2012
  14. ^ "Sound Transit contractor completes mining last tunnel segment for Northgate Link Extension" (Press release). Sound Transit. September 2, 2016. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  15. ^ Tim Newcomb (April 19, 2021), "Seattle's Latest Tunnel Boring Machine Will Dig 2.7 Miles", Engineering News-Record
  16. ^ "Meet our tunnel boring machines". Ship Canal Water Quality Project. Retrieved March 3, 2022.