Caldecott more tunnel history Train Tunnel pt.2

[organicgroove23]

(more)........... did remain open for a time after 1937 when the Caldecott opened. I could imagine bicyclists and horse riders going on the weekends through to Contra Costa via that old upper tunnel. So far there is no proof that it was opened at all after 1937's Caldecott debut

[bcschmerker]

@organicgroove23 I visited the site on 29 September 2011, and in fact the Kennedy Tunnel was closed 1947 (about 14 years before the Oakland & Antioch tunnel, when the WP finished ripping up the tracks and overhead power) due to rotting timbers and cave-ins.

[organicgroove23]

@bcschmerker

Hi....Thanks....I got your message. I can forward you some history papers if you like about the old tunnel. I think I can get you a link that gives the dates for the Kennedy Tunnel start, completion & demise plus for the Oakland & Antioch Railroad tunnel.

[organicgroove23]

@bcschmerker

Kennedy tunnel or Inter-county Tunnel opened 1903 closed 1937. There was a collapse in 1947 & 48 that did it in completely, but there is no record of this tunnel being used for the public after 1937.

The train tunnel in the hills started, the Oakland Antioch Railway started 1909 at Bay Point. It got to Walnut Creek in 1912 and was completed with the tunnel in 1913. There is a picture of the tunnel being in disrepair as of 1957 although it may have been opened for a few years

[organicgroove23]

Yea, funny about that bike path idea. That actually is a cool idea. It could be possible. The tunnel does still exist in fact but is buried on both sides. It would cost a fortune to revamp it and the road leading to Moraga. It could be something East Bay Parks could take up. They actually have the organization to do it. This was my original thought about the old Kennedy/Upper Broadway Tunnel, that in fact it did remain open for a time after 1937 when the Caldecott opened.

[organicgroove23]

OK, The Oakland schools were getting filled up and the bus sysytem someway was not servicing the upper Oakland Hills. Concord had Mt Diablo high School and had a low attendance, probably in the hundreds. The train went right down near Todos Santos Plaza in Concord and someone figured out that kids up in those hills would or should go to Mt Diablo High. This is my guess.

[trisoma1]

Why did students ride 45min from Oakland to Concord to school? Oakland schools were still ok, no??

[bcschmerker]

I'd sure like to see this tunnel cleared, reinforced to at least the same standards as Caldecott Bore 3, ventilated with shafts at appropriate points, and made part of a Regional Trail extension from Moraga to Montclair. Could be an excellent pedestrian/bicycle route.

[trisoma1]

@bcschmerker

Sure, but are you willing to make the toll for bikes $380.00 to pay for it?

[oaks1948]

The eastern portal was covered over in a mudslide during heavy El Nino storms over a decade ago. Shepherd Canyon was our main route out of the Montclair hills when I was growing up and my father told me he used to ride it regularly when he was growing up in Walnut Creek. There are properties sinking above the old tunnel on the Oakland side and ongoing lawsuits as a result.

[bcschmerker]

@oaks1948 Thus the idea that I had to reinforce it to the same standard as Caldecott Bore 3, which would mitigate the soil issues with the properties cited.

[Taftster]

This system went all the way to Chico. It was, at the time the longest electric railway west of the Mississippi. It crossed the San Joaquin River via ferry, near Pittsburg, in Contra Costa County, to Bird's Landing in Solano Co. The tracks are still there, in Solano Co. and are used by the Rio Vista Railway Museum, on Hwy 12. That is the only remaining segment of rail that exists today.

[johnimrie]

So I am confused, is this off of Tunnel Rd, above the mouth of the Caldecott, or on Sheppard Canyon?

[fleaqueg]

pinkyallen, do you know Kirk? He told me that part of the tunnel collapsed from an earthquake or something awhile back and it was possible to get in. Probably not so easy anymore.

[Amiduffer]

Nice searching. This is the kind of places I would have gone had I had the time.

[TAHITI1967]

THE GOOD OLD DAYS, GONE FOREVER

[organicgroove23]

don't film ur self unless someone else is driving, doh!

[nelson3300]

oh so is that off that windy ass road off skyline? yeah... pinehurst... probably shouldnt film yourself driving on that road... just to be safe!

[pinkyallen]

The next block up on Shepard Canyon, turn left on Gunn Drive, and there is a large concrete section of the roadway which is a repair to the tunnel. The tunnel was collapsing and this was done, as well as extensive foundation work to the house to the west, in about 1992. There are also manholes in the concrete road that provide access to the tunnel...

[ducati8901]

wow. didn't know history. I ride my motorcycle all the time through the hills on Fish Ranch and Pine Hurst. Skyline and the likes. I will look for the barrier in your video next time coming back. Is it still hollow inside and what is it's condition? I will def. "stop to smell the rose" next time dragging the knee!

[organicgroove23]

The road is the same and the barrier is still there. You can clearly see the wall/face of the tunnel exit on Pinehurst Rd. The history is very coo. The tunnel is closed but it has been filled only at each end. The tunnel is filled with water and debris probably and is pretty creepy as far as old train tunnels go. Some people have explored this tunnel in the past and had nightmares for days. Have fun biking!!