Richmond Transport tunnel

Richmond Transport tunnel

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Overview
Other name(s)	El Camino Del Mar tunnel
Coordinates	37°47′16″N122°29′00″W / 37.787654°N 122.483369°W / 37.787654; -122.483369 (east portal)
Status	Active
Operation
Opened	1995 (1995)
Character	combined sewer tunnel
Technical
Length	10,200 feet (3,100 m) long
Tunnel clearance	14 feet (4.3 m) diameter

The Richmond Transport tunnel is a 10,200 foot-long, 14 foot diameter combined sewer transport and storage tunnel in San Francisco, California. The tunnel travels from its east portal in the Sea Cliff neighborhood westward under Lincoln Park and Lands End then southward to the north point of the Great Highway. ^[1]

History

The tunnel was constructed in 1995 as part of San Francisco's Wastewater Master Plan. It serves both as sewage transport and as storage with a capacity of 10,000,000 US gallons (38,000 m³). As part of the Richmond transport project, the tunnel connects to the previously abandoned Mile Rock Tunnel outfall and uses it as an emergency overflow when capacity is exceeded. ^[1]

In December 1995, state Senator Quentin Kopp and Lincoln Park Neighborhood Association president Jake Murdock blamed the tunnel construction for a nearby sewer line collapse and subsequent sinkhole. ^[2] The engineering consulting firm Exponent hired by the city found that "cracks in the sewer developed when a series of events converged, including constriction of stormwater flow in pipes and construction activities around the sewers." ^{[3] [4]}

References

1. Maiolini, Steven; Klein, Steve; Essex, Randy (January 1995). "Policies influencing the design of the Richmond transport project" (PDF). Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology - TUNN UNDERGR SPACE TECHNOL. 10: 37–44. doi:10.1016/0886-7798(94)00063-Q . Retrieved 2025-02-05.
2. Nolte, Carl (1995-12-12). "Sea Cliff Mansion Tumbles Into Hole / Aged sewer line collapses under home". SFGate. Retrieved 2025-02-05.
3. Smith, Kendra (2024-12-21). "An empty lot still sits where a sinkhole swallowed a San Francisco home". SFGate. Retrieved 2025-02-05.
4. "Well-Known Investigations". Exponent. Exponent, Inc. Retrieved 2025-02-05.