George Wallace Tunnel

Infobox_Bridge
bridge_name= George Wallace Tunnel


caption= Interstate 10 eastbound in downtown entering the Wallace Tunnel.
official_name= George Corley Wallace Tunnel
also_known_as=
carries= 4 lanes of I-10
crosses= Mobile River
locale= Mobile, Alabama
maint=
id=
design= submerged tunnel
mainspan=
length=
width=
clearance=
below=40 ft (12.2 m)
traffic=
open=1973
closed=
toll=none
map_cue=
map_

map_text=
map_width=
coordinates= coord|30|41|24|N|88|02|08|W|region:US_type:landmark
lat=
long= The George Wallace Tunnel is a tunnel along Interstate 10 in Mobile, Alabama that crosses beneath the Mobile River. "Frequently Asked Questions - Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce" (notes), Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce, 2006, webpage: [http://www.mobilechamber.com/faq.asp MCCOM-FAQ] .]

It, like the smaller Bankhead Tunnel a few blocks upriver from it, was constructed in Mobile at the shipyards of the Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company (ADDSCO) from 1969-1973. The 2 tunnels (one for two lanes of travel eastbound, and one for two lanes of travel westbound on Interstate 10) were built in sections and floated to the proper positions, then sunk. Each section was sunk next to the previous section and joined underwater. When all sections were connected, and concrete set into place, they were pumped dry and finished out. The depth of clearance is 40 ft (12.2 m) for the ship channel over the tunnel. This is the same clearance as the older Bankhead Tunnel.

Entrances

The George C. Wallace Tunnel, like the Bankhead Tunnel, emerges on the west end under Royal Street, in downtown Mobile ("see map below"); however, whereas the Bankhead Tunnel emerges at street level joining into Government Street, the George C. Wallace Tunnel slopes upward to continue Interstate 10 as an elevated highway above the Mobile streets.

On the eastern end, over Blakeley Island, the George C. Wallace Tunnel again slopes upward becoming the elevated spans of I-10, which cross Mobile Bay eastward ("see map"), along the twin bridges of the curved I-10 Jubilee Parkway.Location map | 100x100
lat_deg=35.0 | lon_deg=26.0
marksize=1
label=tunnel | label_size=80
background = #D2D211
Alternative

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width=310
caption=Map of eastern Mobile, showing path of the George C. Wallace Tunnel under the Mobile River.

Nearby construction

In the area where the George C. Wallace Tunnel passes beneath downtown Mobile, the re-filled area was later topped with new buildings, extending from the Mobile River for several blocks, along Water Street and Commerce Street ("see map").

Because the tunnel tubes emerge within downtown Mobile, the riverbank along the Mobile River appears as an unbroken, continuous waterfront ("see map at right"), with no other signs of the tunnels below.

ee also

* Fort Conde - replica fort built above the tunnel during the same decade.

Notes

References

* "Frequently Asked Questions - Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce" (notes), Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce, 2006, webpage: [http://www.mobilechamber.com/faq.asp MCCOM-FAQ] .

Crossings navbox
structure = Crossings
place = Mobile River
bridge = George Wallace Tunnel
bridge signs =
upstream = Bankhead Tunnel
upstream signs =
downstream = Mobile Bay
downstream signs =