George Massey Tunnel
Encyclopedia
The George Massey Tunnel (often referred to simply as the Massey Tunnel) is a highway traffic tunnel in the Metro Vancouver region of southwestern British Columbia
. It is located approximately 20 km (12 mi) south of the city centre of Vancouver
, British Columbia
, and approximately 30 km (20 mi) north of the Canada-U.S. Border at Blaine, Washington
.
Construction, costing approximately $25 million, began on the tunnel in March 1957, and it was opened to traffic on May 23, 1959
as the Deas Island Tunnel.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II attended the official opening ceremony of the tunnel on July 15, 1959. It carries a four lane divided highway under the south arm of the Fraser River
estuary
, joining the City of Richmond
to the north with the Corporation of Delta
(a municipality) to the south. It is the only tunnel below sea level in Canada, making its roadway the lowest road surface in Canada.
The tunnel forms part of Highway 99. It is named for Nehamiah "George" Massey, a former Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
. He represented Delta between 1956 and 1960, and was a long-time advocate of a permanent crossing to replace an existing ferry that crossed the south arm of the Fraser River. The tunnel was renamed the George Massey Tunnel in 1967, three years after George Massey died.
was introduced to meet increasing traffic demand in the tunnel.
At peak rush traffic periods, a reversible lane
system is used, with a series of swing gates deployed reducing traffic in one direction to a single lane, while increasing the other direction to three lanes. Morning rush has three lanes northbound (inbound to Vancouver) and evening rush has three southbound lanes (outbound from Vancouver).
sections (length: 105 m, 345 ft; height: 7 m, 23 ft; width: 23 m, 75 ft). This was the first tunnel to use this precast construction method in North America. The sections were floated into position by barge and then sunk into a shallow trench that had been dug into the loose sand and silt of the river bed. The trench and tunnel sections were then covered over with a protective layer of rock - 500 pound stones filled 50 feet (15 m) out on each side, plus a bed of 1,500 pound stone on top. A structure located at each end of the tunnel houses the main ventilation and pumping equipment. Concrete retaining walls make up the approaches, which extend out about 400 m (¼ mi) from the ventilation buildings. At its lowest point the roadway is about 22 metres (72.2 ft) below sea level, making it the lowest section of roadway in Canada.
The Fraser River flows into the Strait of Georgia
about 5 kilometres (3 mi) downstream from the tunnel.
Due to the tunnel being designed and constructed in the 1950s, very little consideration was given to seismic factors. The river bed is a 600 m (2,000 ft) thick layer of sediment on top of bedrock. This sedimentary layer may liquefy during a major earthquake
, http://www.semp.us/biots/biot_330.html http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=21918, leaving the tunnel with nothing to rest on, and thus vulnerable to total collapse.
In recent years, as the awareness of the effect of serious seismic activity developed, an engineering assessment and subsequent retrofit project was initiated to increase the survivability of the tunnel in the event of a significant earthquake. This retrofit project started in the fall of 2004 and had been completed by the spring of 2006.
The tunnel was constructed for the British Columbia Toll Highways and Bridge Authority, and is now administered by the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation. It has not had a toll on it since the 1960s, when tolls were removed from all of the bridges and tunnels in the Lower Mainland
(although tolls are collected on the Golden Ears Bridge
, completed in 2009 and the future replacement Port Mann bridge). The initial toll was 25 cents; in 1964, George Massey became the last person to pay the toll, which was then one dollar.
On February 16, 2006, it was reported that the provincial government had plans to expand the tunnel's capacity, from four lanes to six, dubbed the "H99" project.
As the tunnel would be prohibitively dangerous for cyclists, fare-free shuttle service is available from April to October.
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. It is located approximately 20 km (12 mi) south of the city centre of Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, and approximately 30 km (20 mi) north of the Canada-U.S. Border at Blaine, Washington
Blaine, Washington
Blaine is a city in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. The city's northern boundary is the Canadian border. Blaine is the shared home of the Peace Arch international monument...
.
Construction, costing approximately $25 million, began on the tunnel in March 1957, and it was opened to traffic on May 23, 1959
as the Deas Island Tunnel.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II attended the official opening ceremony of the tunnel on July 15, 1959. It carries a four lane divided highway under the south arm of the Fraser River
Fraser River
The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...
estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
, joining the City of Richmond
Richmond, British Columbia
Richmond is a coastal city, incorporated in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Part of Metro Vancouver, its neighbouring communities are Vancouver and Burnaby to the north, New Westminster to the east, and Delta to the south, while the Strait of Georgia forms its western border...
to the north with the Corporation of Delta
Delta, British Columbia
Delta is a district municipality in British Columbia, and forms part of Metro Vancouver. Located south of Richmond, it is bordered by the Fraser River to the north, the United States to the south and the city of Surrey to the east...
(a municipality) to the south. It is the only tunnel below sea level in Canada, making its roadway the lowest road surface in Canada.
The tunnel forms part of Highway 99. It is named for Nehamiah "George" Massey, a former Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....
. He represented Delta between 1956 and 1960, and was a long-time advocate of a permanent crossing to replace an existing ferry that crossed the south arm of the Fraser River. The tunnel was renamed the George Massey Tunnel in 1967, three years after George Massey died.
Configuration
The tunnel is a single tube that is subdivided with a concrete wall, each side containing two traffic lanes. The typical traffic flow has two northbound lanes in the east tube and two southbound lanes in the west tube. In 1989 a counterflow systemReversible lane
A reversible lane , called a counterflow lane or contraflow lane in transport engineering nomenclature, is a lane in which traffic may travel in either direction, depending on certain conditions...
was introduced to meet increasing traffic demand in the tunnel.
At peak rush traffic periods, a reversible lane
Reversible lane
A reversible lane , called a counterflow lane or contraflow lane in transport engineering nomenclature, is a lane in which traffic may travel in either direction, depending on certain conditions...
system is used, with a series of swing gates deployed reducing traffic in one direction to a single lane, while increasing the other direction to three lanes. Morning rush has three lanes northbound (inbound to Vancouver) and evening rush has three southbound lanes (outbound from Vancouver).
Construction and maintenance
The 629 m (2,063 ft) long tunnel is made up of six precast concretePrecast concrete
By producing precast concrete in a controlled environment , the precast concrete is afforded the opportunity to properly cure and be closely monitored by plant employees. Utilizing a Precast Concrete system offers many potential advantages over site casting of concrete...
sections (length: 105 m, 345 ft; height: 7 m, 23 ft; width: 23 m, 75 ft). This was the first tunnel to use this precast construction method in North America. The sections were floated into position by barge and then sunk into a shallow trench that had been dug into the loose sand and silt of the river bed. The trench and tunnel sections were then covered over with a protective layer of rock - 500 pound stones filled 50 feet (15 m) out on each side, plus a bed of 1,500 pound stone on top. A structure located at each end of the tunnel houses the main ventilation and pumping equipment. Concrete retaining walls make up the approaches, which extend out about 400 m (¼ mi) from the ventilation buildings. At its lowest point the roadway is about 22 metres (72.2 ft) below sea level, making it the lowest section of roadway in Canada.
The Fraser River flows into the Strait of Georgia
Strait of Georgia
The Strait of Georgia or the Georgia Strait is a strait between Vancouver Island and the mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada. It is approximately long and varies in width from...
about 5 kilometres (3 mi) downstream from the tunnel.
Due to the tunnel being designed and constructed in the 1950s, very little consideration was given to seismic factors. The river bed is a 600 m (2,000 ft) thick layer of sediment on top of bedrock. This sedimentary layer may liquefy during a major earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
, http://www.semp.us/biots/biot_330.html http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=21918, leaving the tunnel with nothing to rest on, and thus vulnerable to total collapse.
In recent years, as the awareness of the effect of serious seismic activity developed, an engineering assessment and subsequent retrofit project was initiated to increase the survivability of the tunnel in the event of a significant earthquake. This retrofit project started in the fall of 2004 and had been completed by the spring of 2006.
The tunnel was constructed for the British Columbia Toll Highways and Bridge Authority, and is now administered by the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation. It has not had a toll on it since the 1960s, when tolls were removed from all of the bridges and tunnels in the Lower Mainland
Lower Mainland
The Lower Mainland is a name commonly applied to the region surrounding and including Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. As of 2007, 2,524,113 people live in the region; sixteen of the province's thirty most populous municipalities are located there.While the term Lower Mainland has been...
(although tolls are collected on the Golden Ears Bridge
Golden Ears Bridge
The Golden Ears Bridge is a six-lane extradosed bridge in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia. It spans the Fraser River, connecting Langley on the south side with Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge on the north side. The All Electronic Toll bridge, owned by TransLink, has a clearance of , and a total...
, completed in 2009 and the future replacement Port Mann bridge). The initial toll was 25 cents; in 1964, George Massey became the last person to pay the toll, which was then one dollar.
On February 16, 2006, it was reported that the provincial government had plans to expand the tunnel's capacity, from four lanes to six, dubbed the "H99" project.
As the tunnel would be prohibitively dangerous for cyclists, fare-free shuttle service is available from April to October.
See also
External links
- Satellite photo of George Massey Tunnel from Google Maps
- "Prefab Tunnel Conquers A Tough River" , March 1959, Popular Mechanics detailed article on what was then the Deas Island Tunnel
- Vancouver Sun Article - Twinned Tunnel Part of Victoria's Plan
- Buckand and Taylor Bridge Engineering, George Massey Tunnel project
- George Massey Tunnel Bicycle Shuttle
- Videos of the construction of the George Massey Tunnel - courtesy of the Delta Optimist
- Kenaidan Seismic Retrofit Project
- Journal of Commerce article on tunnel