Fort Mason Tunnel is an abandoned single-track railway tunnel in San Francisco which runs under a small hill upon which sits a portion of the old Fort Mason. The tunnel was constructed in 1913 and opened to rail traffic in 1914.[1] The east portal is near the north end of Van Ness Avenue; the west portal feeds onto Marina Boulevard at Laguna Street.

Fort Mason Tunnel
The west portal of the Fort Mason Tunnel in disuse as seen in June 2017
Overview
LineState Belt Railroad
LocationSan Francisco, California
Coordinates37°48′19″N 122°25′52″W / 37.8054°N 122.43118°W / 37.8054; -122.43118
StartVan Ness
EndMarina Bl. at Laguna St.
Operation
Opened1914
Closed1993
OwnerNational Park Service
CharacterTunnel
Technical
No. of tracks1
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

History

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The tunnel's construction served several purposes. The rail link supplied goods and mass transit to the Panama Pacific International Exposition the following year; the U.S. Army utilized the line for construction of the port of embarkation at Fort Mason.[2] The tunnel operated as part of the State Belt Railroad until the route's suspension in 1993. A portion of the movie Dirty Harry was filmed on either side of the tunnel in 1971.[3]

Future

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Fort Mason extension
 
Fort Mason
proposed
 
Fort Mason Tunnel
proposed
 
Van Ness
proposed
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hyde and Beach
proposed
 
 
 
 
 
Jones and Beach
 
 

In 2012, the National Park Service released a final environmental impact report on providing extended service through the tunnel to the San Francisco Municipal Railway F Market & Wharves line.[4] The cost of refurbishment and extension of the rail line was estimated at $60 million in 2017.[5]

References

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  1. ^ 4th Biennial Report of the Department of Engineering of the State of California, pp. 41-42
  2. ^ "The San Francisco Port of Embarkation". NPS.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  3. ^ "Film Locations for Dirty Harry (1971), around San Francisco".
  4. ^ "Extension of F-Line Streetcar Service to Fort Mason Center" (PDF). NPS.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
  5. ^ Chappell, Jim (June 28, 2016). "Bring streetcars to Fort Mason". The San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved June 4, 2017.