Seattle's Great Northern Tunnel

Another mobile moment. A second day of Jury Duty took me back to Seattle...and back to the trains. Built in 1904, the Great Northern Tunnel literally goes under the City of Seattle. The dig was so accurate that the two ends were said to be perfectly aligned when one team broke through to the other side in October 1904.

The mile-long tunnel is now heavily used and has two tracks running through the entire length. Typical traffic through the tunnel includes BNSF, Amtrak, and Sounder trains. The roof of the tunnel has been notched on the sides to allow for "Double-Stack" railcars to pass through, something that is still not possible with more famous tunnels like Stampede Pass.

A great place to watch movements is right along 4th Avenue between Washington and Main Street.