Detroit–Windsor Tunnel

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Detroit–Windsor Tunnel
Detroit–Windsor Tunnel
Carries 2 lanes connecting I-375/M-10 & Highway 3B
Crosses Detroit River
Locale Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario
Total length 5,160 feet (1,573 m)
Width 22 ft (6.7 m)
Vertical clearance 13 ft 2 in (4 m)
AADT 28,000 per day
Opening date 1930

The Detroit–Windsor Tunnel is a highway tunnel connecting Detroit, Michigan in the United States, with Windsor, Ontario in Canada. It was completed in 1930.

It is the second busiest crossing between the United States and Canada after the nearby Ambassador Bridge. About 28,000 vehicles use the tunnel each day. The structure is jointly owned by the two cities.

It was only the third underwater vehicular tunnel constructed in the U.S. (after the Holland Tunnel between Jersey City, New Jersey and downtown Manhattan, New York City, New York and the Posey Tube between Oakland and Alameda, California).

Its creation was prompted by the opening of cross-border rail freight tunnels including the St. Clair Tunnel between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario and the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel between Detroit and Windsor.

The Detroit–Windsor Tunnel was constructed of sections of steel tube floated into place and sunk into a trench dug in the river bottom. The river section of the tunnel was connected to bored tunnels on both banks. The tubes were then covered over in the trench by 4 to 20 feet (1.2 m to 6.1 m) of mud. Because the tunnel essentially sits on the river bottom, there is a wide no-anchor zone enforced on river traffic.

The Detroit–Windsor Tunnel is 120 feet short of a mile at 5,160 feet long (1,573 m). At its lowest point, the two-lane roadway is 75 feet (22.8 m) below the river surface.

[edit] External links

Crossings of the Detroit River
Upstream
MacArthur Bridge
Detroit–Windsor Tunnel
Downstream
Michigan Central Railway Tunnel

Coordinates: 42°19′28.21″N, 82°2′24.19″W