Cumberland Gap Tunnel
| Cumberland Gap Tunnel | |
|---|---|
 The north portal of the tunnel
|
|
| use | Road tunnel |
| traffic connection | US Highway 25E |
| length | 1402 m |
| Number of tubes | 2 |
| construction | |
| building-costs | $ 280 million |
| start of building | June 21, 1991 |
| business | |
| toll | no |
| release | October 18, 1996 |
| Coordinates | |
| North portal | 36 ° 36 ′ 11 " N , 83 ° 41 ′ 3" W. |
| South portal | 36 ° 35 ′ 43 " N , 83 ° 40 ′ 18" W. |
Map with all coordinates: The Cumberland Gap Tunnel is a road tunnel in the United States . It pierces the Cumberland Mountains near the historic Cumberland Gap .
Building
The tunnel consists of two tubes with two lanes each and is 1,402 meters long. It is part of US Highway 25E and connects Kentucky with Tennessee . The north portal is near the town of Middlesboro , the south portal is near the town of Cumberland Gap . Completed in 1996, the cost of the structure was US $ 280 million, more than twice as much as budgeted.
history
A traffic connection, the Wilderness Road , ran over the Cumberland Gap at the end of the 18th century . In 1908, this road was macadamized as one of the first highways in the United States . From the 1950s onwards, the old pass road was no longer able to cope with the steadily increasing traffic, and due to the many accidents, the highway was nicknamed Massacre Mountain . Geological investigations for the tunnel began in 1979, and an exploratory tunnel was completed in 1985. Numerous geological obstacles were found, especially the strong water flow had to be taken into account. On average, 1700 liters of tunnel water leave the mountain every minute .
The actual construction work began in 1991, the breakthrough took place on July 9, 1992. The Cumberland Gap Tunnel was opened to traffic on October 18, 1996. Instead of the old highway over the Cumberland Gap, parts of the Wilderness Road were reconstructed.