Flathead Tunnel

Flathead Tunnel
	Eastbound Empire Builder enters Flathead Tunnel
Overview
Line	Kootenai River Subdivision (Northern Transcon)
Location	Lincoln County, Montana, USA
Coordinates	48°33′03″N 114°57′22″W / 48.5508192°N 114.9561739°WCoordinates: 48°33′03″N 114°57′22″W / 48.5508192°N 114.9561739°W
System	BNSF
Operation
Work begun	May 12, 1966
Constructed	blasted with cut and cover portals
Opened	November 7, 1970
Owner	BNSF
Traffic	50 trains daily (as of 2018)
Technical
Length	36,955 ft (7.0 mi; 11.3 km)
No. of tracks	Single
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Highest elevation	3,720 ft (1,130 m)
Lowest elevation	3,620 ft (1,100 m)

The Flathead Tunnel, also known as the Breakfast Tunnel,^{[citation needed]} is a 7-mile-long (11 km) railroad tunnel in the Rocky Mountains of northwest Montana near Trego, approximately 28 miles (45 km) west of Whitefish. Located on the BNSF Kootenai River Subdivision, it is the second-longest railroad tunnel in the United States after the Cascade Tunnel.^[1]^[2]

Construction began in 1966 and the tunnel opened on November 7, 1970.^[1] It was built by the Burlington Northern Railroad as part of a new 60-mile (97 km) bypass of part of the existing route that had to be abandoned due to changes caused by the construction of Libby Dam.^[1]^[3]

As of 2018 the tunnel is used by about 50 freight trains each day^[2] as well as Amtrak's Empire Builder. Speed through the tunnel is approximately 50 miles per hour (80 km/h).^{[citation needed]} Fans and a door at the east portal are used to ventilate the tunnel and clear it of diesel locomotive exhaust.^[2]^[4]

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e The Flathead Tunnel: A Geologic, Operations, and Ground Support Study, Burlington Northern Railroad, Salish Mountains, Montana (PDF). University of North Texas Library (Report). Spokane Mining Research Center. U.S. Bureau of Mines. 1974. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Franz, Justin (13 February 2018). "BNSF to Improve Flathead Tunnel as Part of Annual Capital Program". Flathead Beacon. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
^ Floyd, Doug (August 25, 1975). "Dam gets Ford's praise, but it's not energy key". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). pp. 1, 3.
^ "Montana Tunnels". The Great Northern Empire.^{[self-published source?]}

External links[]

RR Pictures Archive - east portal

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[USBOM-1] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e The Flathead Tunnel: A Geologic, Operations, and Ground Support Study, Burlington Northern Railroad, Salish Mountains, Montana (PDF). University of North Texas Library (Report). Spokane Mining Research Center. U.S. Bureau of Mines. 1974. Retrieved 2 August 2021.

[Flathead_Beacon-2] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Franz, Justin (13 February 2018). "BNSF to Improve Flathead Tunnel as Part of Annual Capital Program". Flathead Beacon. Retrieved 12 October 2018.

[nenkey-3] Floyd, Doug (August 25, 1975). "Dam gets Ford's praise, but it's not energy key". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). pp. 1, 3.

[4] "Montana Tunnels". The Great Northern Empire.^{[self-published source?]}

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Overview
Eastbound Empire Builder enters Flathead Tunnel
Line	Kootenai River Subdivision (Northern Transcon)
Location	Lincoln County, Montana, USA
Coordinates	48°33′03″N 114°57′22″W / 48.5508192°N 114.9561739°W / 48.5508192; -114.9561739Coordinates: 48°33′03″N 114°57′22″W / 48.5508192°N 114.9561739°W / 48.5508192; -114.9561739
System	BNSF
Operation
Work begun	May 12, 1966^[1]^:2
Constructed	blasted with cut and cover portals
Opened	November 7, 1970
Owner	BNSF
Traffic	50 trains daily (as of 2018)
Technical
Length	36,955 ft (7.0 mi; 11.3 km)^[1]^:2
No. of tracks	Single
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Highest elevation	3,720 ft (1,130 m)
Lowest elevation	3,620 ft (1,100 m)