Begun in July 2007 and completed two years later, this tunnel's purpose is to divert the vehicles being off-loaded from the ferry in Bremerton, Washington. Once off the ferry, all vehicles proceed into the 959-foot long tunnel with its two lanes of traffic in one direction, and come out on Burwell Street, thus avoiding the downtown waterfront area with its pedestrians and congestion.
Named the fourth bore due to the existence of three bores, or tunnels, named Caldecott, this new tunnel proposes to alleviate the current traffic overload on the existing tunnels. Located in Alameda County in California, this tunnel on State Road 24 between Oakland and Orinda will assist with the heavy demands. Currently the middle bore traffic switches daily to one way at different times and directions to accommodate commuters. Once the fourth bore comes online, two tunnels can handle traffic in one direction all day. Tunnel construction is scheduled to be completed in late 2013 or early 2014.
The famous Route 1 runs right alongside the California coast and is known for its beauty. In one stretch of the highway from Pacifia to Montara, the road crosses the Devil's Slide region, a very unstable area. The road is periodically closed due to rockslides and other problems. In 1995 it closed for 158 days at a cost of $3 million to repair. This project, 30 years in the planning, will construct two 4,200-foot long inland tunnels to be completed in 2012, bypassing Route 1 and providing safe transportation.
