The Road Into This Alaska City Is A One-Lane Tunnel That Cars Share With Trains

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We didn't get all that deep into the 20th century before folks realized cars and trains should never tango, but the Anthony Anderson Tunnel (aka The Whittier Tunnel) bucks that pretty obvious notion. It's a one-lane, one-way tunnel shared by both cars and trains. At 2.5 miles long, it is the longest highway tunnel in the U.S. to boot. While it may not be quite as exciting as the Dempster Highway or the world's (potentially) longest ferry, this tunnel has another trick up its sleeve–it; this tunnel takes you to "The Town Under One Roof." Otherwise known as Whittier, Alaska.

Whittier is snuggled between a towering mountain range on one side and an arm of the Prince William Sound, which leads into the North Pacific Ocean, on the other. The port on this deep-water fjord remains ice-free, but the whole area is foggy, cloudy and generally moist year round. Not great for working on your tan, but great if you want to build a secret military base to hide from the prying eyes of your enemies, which is just what the U.S. Army did.

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During WWII, the Army set its sights on Whittier as the perfect place to bring in and distribute supplies in Alaska. There was only one problem: a huge mountain stood in the way. The Army started punching right through that sucker to connect a rail line from Whittier to the Alaska Railroad's main line.

The new rail line brought even more people to Whittier. The town's population swelled to 1,000 folks, with a mix of military and civilian personnel. In order to accommodate this new population, two multi-story buildings were built, the Buckner Building and Hodge Towers. Completed in 1953, the two buildings contained everything the residents of Whittier needed, such as movie theaters, a bowling alley, a chapel, a small jail. A few short years later, the military started pulling out of Whittier and, in 1966, the Buckner Building was decommissioned. It still stands, inhabited only by bears who overall seem happy with the situation. In 1972 the city bought the remaining habitable building, which was renamed the Begich Towers. The building still houses a majority of Whittier's 250+ full time residents to this day. It's unclear if the small jail is still in use, but the building does boast a post office, a general store, a laundromat, and a small Baptist church –all under that one roof.

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Up until quite recently, the only way to get a car to Whittier was loading it on a train at Portage, Alaska, which was both expensive and not very efficient. Options to create a drivable route to Whittier were explored, such as a highway over the mountain or adding a highway to the tunnel. Instead the decision was made to reconfigure the existing tunnel to accept both cars and trains. Brilliant! This plan was approved in 1995 and work completed in 2000. It takes 20-30 minutes to drive the tunnel and depending on what side you're on, you leave on either the hour or half hour. Big fans blow the sucker clean after every trip.

In 2019 the Whittier Tunnel saw about 278,000 vehicles slide through its maw and that number has only gone up as the area is becoming more and more popular. The town of Whittier has become a bit of a popular tourist area. It's a jumping off point for cruises, fisherman, glacier tours and adventures of all types. Even jet skiing! Yes, they have dry suits you can rent.