View source for Fort McHenry Tunnel

{{Short description|Tunnel in Baltimore}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{More citations needed|date=July 2011}}
{{Infobox tunnel
|map={{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=290|frame-height=240|type=line|raw={{Wikipedia:Map data/Wikipedia KML/Fort McHenry Tunnel}}}}
|name         = Fort McHenry Tunnel
|image        = Fort McHenry Tunnel Bore 2.jpg
|image_size   = 300px
|caption      = Southbound tunnel, Bore 2
|location     = [[Baltimore]] [[Inner Harbor|Harbor]]
|coordinates  = {{Coord|39|15|39.2|N|76|34|36.3|W|display=inline}}
|route        = {{jct|state=MD|I|95}}
|status       =
|start        = [[Locust Point, Baltimore|Locust Point]]
|end          = [[Canton, Baltimore|Canton]]
|startwork    =
|opened = {{start date and age|1985|11|23}}<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hq1PAAAAIBAJ&dq=Baltimore+Opens+Harbor+Tunnel&pg=PA3&article_id=4585,5210681 |title=Baltimore Harbor Tunnel Opens|page=3 |date=1985-11-24 
 |newspaper=Ocala Star-Banner |language=en}}</ref>
|close        =
|owner        = [[Maryland Transportation Authority]]
|operator     =
|traffic      = Automotive
|character    = Highway
|toll         = Passenger cars:<br>$3 Maryland E-ZPass<br>$4 non-Maryland E-ZPass<br>$6 Video toll
|vpd          = 115,000
|construction = 1980–1985
|length       = {{convert|1.5|mi|km}}
|lanes        = 8
|speed        = {{convert|55|mph|km/h}}
|hielevation  =
|lowelevation = {{convert|107|ft|m}} below harbor water surface
|height       = {{convert|13.6|ft|m}}
|width        = {{convert|26|ft|m}}
|grade        =
}}

The '''Fort McHenry Tunnel''' is a four-tube, bi-directional [[tunnel]] that carries traffic on [[Interstate 95 in Maryland|Interstate 95]] (I-95) underneath the [[Baltimore]] [[Inner Harbor|Harbor]]. Named for nearby [[Fort McHenry]], the tunnel is the lowest point in the [[Interstate Highway System]] under water.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Interstate |url=http://gingerstrand.com/interstate.htm |website=Ginger Strand |access-date=February 15, 2019}}</ref>

Construction began in May 1980; the tunnel opened on November 23, 1985. Having consumed some $750 million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|0.75|1985|r=1}}&nbsp;billion in {{Inflation/year|US}}), it was the most expensive Interstate project until surpassed by the [[Big Dig]] in [[Boston]].<ref name="DCRoads">DCRoads.net. [http://www.dcroads.net/crossings/fort-mchenry/ "Fort McHenry Tunnel: Historic Overview"]. Accessed 2011-07-11.</ref> {{as of|2009}}, it was used by 43.4 million vehicles annually.{{Update inline|date=January 2023}}

Tolls are collected in both directions. The toll for cars is $3 with a Maryland [[E-ZPass]] and $4 with another state's E-ZPass. Vehicles without an E-ZPass pay more, as do those with more than two axles—up to $45 for a 6+ axle vehicle without an E-ZPass.<ref name="Toll_Rates">[http://www.mdta.maryland.gov/TollRatesTables "Maryland Toll Rates"]. Accessed 2023-01-31.</ref> [[Open road tolling|All-electronic tolling]] using E-ZPass or [[toll-by-plate]] started in March 2020 as a result of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] and was made permanent in August 2020.<ref>{{cite news|title=All-Electronic Tolling Now Permanent at All MDTA Facilities Statewide in Maryland|publisher=WBOC-TV|location=Salisbury, MD|date=August 6, 2020|url=http://www.wboc.com/story/42463689/md-governor-announces-allelectronic-tolling-now-permanent-at-all-mdta-facilities-statewide|access-date=August 6, 2020}}</ref> A project to demolish the toll plaza and replace it with overhead gantries for [[open road tolling]] started in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CONSTRUCTION AT FORT MCHENRY TUNNEL (I-95) TOLL PLAZA WILL PROVIDE DRIVERS WITH HIGHWAY-SPEED ACCESS TO ALL-ELECTRONIC TOLLING {{!}} MDTA |url=https://mdta.maryland.gov/blog-category/mdta-news-releases/construction-fort-mchenry-tunnel-i-95-toll-plaza-will-provide |access-date=2022-08-16 |website=mdta.maryland.gov}}</ref>

==Location==
[[File:Northbound I-95 through Fort McHenry Tunnel, Baltimore, MD 2 360px.ogv|thumb|left|Northbound trip through tunnel<br/>([[:File:Northbound I-95 through Fort McHenry Tunnel, Baltimore, MD.ogv|View in high quality]])]]
The tunnel crosses the [[Patapsco River]], just south of Fort McHenry; it connects the [[Locust Point, Baltimore|Locust Point]] and [[Canton, Baltimore|Canton]] areas of [[Baltimore|Baltimore City]].

==Design and construction==
[[File:2015-04-09 18 54 27 View south along Interstate 95 entering the Fort McHenry Tunnel in Baltimore, Maryland.jpg|left|thumb|View of entrance to tunnel]]

Plans for a second crossing of the Baltimore Harbor that would become the Fort McHenry Tunnel began in the late 1960s. Early plans called for an 8-lane [[double-deck bridge]] to carry I-95 over the harbor just south of Fort McHenry. In 1975, plans were changed to a tunnel after it was determined that a bridge would hurt Fort McHenry's status as a national monument.

The state of [[Maryland]] originally intended to build the tunnel with a [[Reinforced concrete box|reinforced concrete box design]], but plans were changed in February 1976 to use a steel tubular design after a dispute with the [[Federal Highway Administration]]. The tunnel was to be constructed using the [[Immersed tube|immersed tube method]], with prefabricated tubes sunken into the harbor.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kozel |first1=Scott M. |title=Fort McHenry Tunnel |url=http://www.roadstothefuture.com/Fort_McHenry_Tunnel.html |website=Roads to the Future |access-date=March 22, 2019}}</ref>

Construction began in May 1980 by K-R-T (a [[joint venture]] between [[Kiewit Corporation|Peter Kiewit Sons Company]], Raymond International Builders, and Tidewater Construction Corporation), and was completed in November 1985. Ninety percent of construction costs were covered by federal funding, while 10 percent came from state funding. The tunnel consists of 32 tube sections, each {{convert|82|ft|m}} wide and {{convert|42|ft|m}} tall. The east and west approaches are {{convert|1600|ft|m}} and {{convert|3200|ft|m}} long, respectively.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ft. McHenry Tunnel |url=https://www.roadtraffic-technology.com/projects/ftmchenrytunnel/ |website=Road Traffic Technology |access-date=March 23, 2019}}</ref>

Opened on time and under budget, the tunnel closed a gap in I-95 through Maryland.<ref name="Fact_sheet">[http://www.mdta.maryland.gov/TollFacilities/documents/FMT_Fact_Sheet.pdf "The Fort McHenry Tunnel."] Fact sheet.</ref> Soon after the Fort McHenry Tunnel opened, the nearby [[Baltimore Harbor Tunnel]], which had opened to traffic in 1957, was extensively rehabilitated.

The Fort McHenry Tunnel continues to be a vital transportation link in the Mid-Atlantic region. After the [[Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse]]d on March 26, 2024, the tunnel became one of the primary alternate routes for drivers and trucks containing non-hazardous loads.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mattu |first=Rohan |date=2024-03-26 |title=How to travel around the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore: A look at the traffic impact and alternate routes - CBS Baltimore |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/travel-around-francis-scott-key-bridge-collapse-baltimore-traffic/ |access-date=2024-03-26 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

{{clear}}

==See also==
*{{Portal-inline|Maryland Roads}}
*[[Francis Scott Key Bridge (Baltimore)]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Attached KML|display=title,inline}}
*[http://www.roadstothefuture.com/Fort_McHenry_Tunnel.html Fort McHenry Tunnel]—history and technical info by Roads to the Future

{{Crossings navbox
|structure=Crossings
|place=[[Patapsco River]]
|bridge=Fort McHenry Tunnel
|bridge signs=[[Image:I-95.svg|20px]]
|upstream=[[Hanover Street Bridge]]
|upstream signs=[[Image:MD Route 2.svg|20px]]
|downstream=[[Baltimore Harbor Tunnel]]
|downstream signs=[[Image:I-895.svg|25px]]
}}
{{MdTA facilities}}
{{Baltimore bridges and tunnels}}

[[Category:Crossings of the Patapsco River]]
[[Category:Tunnels in Baltimore]]
[[Category:Toll tunnels in Maryland]]
[[Category:Tolled sections of Interstate Highways]]
[[Category:Interstate 95]]
[[Category:Tunnels completed in 1985]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Road tunnels in Maryland]]
[[Category:Immersed tube tunnels in the United States]]