J&L Tunnel

J&L Tunnel
Overview
LinePittsburgh Subdivision
LocationSouthSide Works, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Coordinates40°25′42″N 79°57′53″W / 40.42826°N 79.96467°W / 40.42826; -79.96467
SystemCSX Transportation
Operation
ConstructedAugust 1, 1882[1] – August 19, 1883[2]
Technical
Length1,626 feet (496 m)[3]
No. of tracks1[4]
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Width24 feet (7.3 m)[3]

J&L Tunnel is a tunnel on CSX Transportation's Pittsburgh Subdivision, at the former location of Jones and Laughlin Steel Company (now the SouthSide Works).

The tunnel was used to allow trains on the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad to bypass the Jones and Laughlin steel mill, by passing under it.

Starting in 2011,[5] work was performed, as part of CSX Transportation's National Gateway project, to raise the clearance inside the tunnel, allowing double-stacked container trains to pass through the tunnel.[3]

Above the tunnel is a small park called Tunnel Park.[6]

References

  1. ^ "A Railroad Centre", Pittsburgh Commercial Gazette, p. 2, col. 3, August 14, 1883
  2. ^ "News Notes" (PDF), The Evening Post (2d ed.), New York, p. 3, col. 6, August 20, 1883
  3. ^ a b c "J & L Tunnel Design-Build Roof Reconstruction". ENR MidAtlantic. December 12, 2014.
  4. ^ "CSX Transportation J&L Tunnel Modification Project" (PDF). AREMA. 2014. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  5. ^ "J&L Tunnel". National Gateway.
  6. ^ Schmitz, Jon (October 24, 2012). "South Side rail tunnel gains height in freight project". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.