The
Michigan Central Railway Tunnel is a railroad tunnel under the
Detroit RiverThe Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
connecting Detroit,
MichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
,
USAThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with
Windsor, OntarioWindsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
,
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The U.S. entrance is south of Porter St. and Vermont St. near Rosa Parks Blvd. The Canadian entrance is south of Wyandotte St. W. between Cameron Ave. and Wellington Ave. It was built by the
Detroit River Tunnel Company for the
Canada Southern RailwayThe Canada Southern Railway was a railway in southern Ontario, Canada, founded on February 28, 1868 as the Erie and Niagara Extension Railway. It adopted the Canada Southern Railway name on December 24, 1869. In 1904 the railway was leased to the Michigan Central Railroad for 99 years; in 1929 it...
, leased by the
Michigan Central RailroadThe Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada...
and owned by the
New York Central RailroadThe New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
. The tunnel opened in 1910 and is still in use today by the
Canadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
. On the Detroit side, the area around the tunnel is off limits to the general public and is routinely patrolled by officers and agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Canadian Pacific Railway Police, Canadian National Railway Police, the Detroit Police, and the security elements of the bridge company.
History
Prior to the construction of the tunnel, the
Canada Southern RailwayThe Canada Southern Railway was a railway in southern Ontario, Canada, founded on February 28, 1868 as the Erie and Niagara Extension Railway. It adopted the Canada Southern Railway name on December 24, 1869. In 1904 the railway was leased to the Michigan Central Railroad for 99 years; in 1929 it...
had several connections to
MichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
at its west end, all
train ferriesA train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
. The northern one ran across the
St. Clair RiverThe St. Clair River is a river in central North America which drains Lake Huron into Lake St Clair, forming part of the international boundary between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Michigan...
, connecting to the St. Clair and Western Railroad. The southern connection crossed the
Detroit RiverThe Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
south of Detroit, connecting to the Canada Southern Bridge Company at
Grosse IleGrosse Ile may refer to:* Grosse Ile Township, Michigan*Grosse Ile , the largest island in the township* Grosse Ile, Quebec, an island where many Irish Immigrants to Canada were housed and the site of the Grosse Isle Disaster...
. Additionally a branch (usually considered the main line) split from the line to Grosse Ile at Essex, running to the
Detroit RiverThe Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
at Windsor.
In 1891 the
Grand Trunk RailwayThe Grand Trunk Railway was a railway system which operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, as well as the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec; however, corporate...
opened the
St. Clair TunnelThe St. Clair Tunnel is the name for two separate rail tunnels which were built under the St. Clair River between Sarnia, Ontario and Port Huron, Michigan. It was the first full-size subaqueous tunnel built in North America. -First tunnel :The St. Clair Tunnel Company opened the first tunnel in...
at Port Huron, giving it an advantage over the Canada Southern and its car ferries. The
Detroit River Tunnel Company was formed August 15, 1905 as a merger of the
Michigan and Canada Bridge and Tunnel Company (in
MichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
) and the
Canada and Michigan Bridge and Tunnel Company (in
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
). Construction began in October 1906 under the engineering supervision of The New York Central Railway's engineering vice president,
William J. WilgusWilliam J. Wilgus was an engineer. In 1902 he was responsible for the design and construction of New York City's Grand Central Station. Wilgus coined the term "taking wealth from the air" from his idea to lease the area above the Park Avenue Tunnel in order to help finance the station...
. The Michigan Central Railway Tunnel opened for passenger service July 26, 1910. Freight service began September 15 and on October 16 all traffic began running via the tunnel, ending the use of a
train car ferryA train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
. From opening it was operated by the
Michigan Central RailroadThe Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada...
under lease of December 19, 1906.
On the east (Canadian) side, the tunnel connected to the line that had served a train ferry at Windsor. On the west (U.S.) side, the tunnel connected to the
Michigan Central RailroadThe Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada...
main line west of downtown (later abandoned east of the junction), and the
Michigan Central StationMichigan Central Station , built in mid-1912 through 1913 for the Michigan Central Railroad, was Detroit, Michigan's passenger rail depot from its opening in 1913 after the previous Michigan Central Station burned, until the cessation of Amtrak service on January 6, 1988...
was built west of the junction, opening in 1913.
In 1968 the tunnel passed from the
New York Central RailroadThe New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
to Penn Central, and in 1976 to Conrail. In 1985, Conrail sold the tunnel to the
Canadian National RailwayThe Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
and
Canadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
, with each getting a half share. In early 2000 CN agreed to sell its stake to Borealis Transportation and use only the
St. Clair TunnelThe St. Clair Tunnel is the name for two separate rail tunnels which were built under the St. Clair River between Sarnia, Ontario and Port Huron, Michigan. It was the first full-size subaqueous tunnel built in North America. -First tunnel :The St. Clair Tunnel Company opened the first tunnel in...
. Recently, plans from the Detroit River Tunnel Partnership (DRTP) were announced to construct a new railway tunnel and convert the existing railway tunnel to a two-lane road tunnel for transport trucks to alleviate pressure at the other nearby international border crossings (
Ambassador BridgeThe Ambassador Bridge is a suspension bridge that connects Detroit, Michigan, in the United States, with Windsor, Ontario, in Canada. It is the busiest international border crossing in North America in terms of trade volume: more than 25 percent of all merchandise trade between the United States...
, Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, and the
Detroit-Windsor Truck FerryThe Detroit-Windsor Truck Ferry is a ferry service that has transported cars and trucks across the Detroit River for over 100 years. It currently accepts only trucks. The ferry is the primary crossing for hazardous materials trucks between Windsor, La Salle, and Detroit, Michigan and the Downriver...
), but these plans have been put on hold while the city governments of
WindsorThe Windsor City Council is the governing body of Windsor, Ontario, Canada.The council consists of the mayor plus ten elected city councillors representing the city as a whole.*Mayor: Eddie Francis*Ward 1: Dave Brister, Drew Dilkens...
and
DetroitThe Detroit City Council is the legislative body of Detroit, Michigan, United States. The City Council consists of nine members elected for a four-year term in a single election conducted on an at-large and non-partisan basis...
, provincial/state governments of
OntarioThe Government of Ontario refers to the provincial government of the province of Ontario, Canada. Its powers and structure are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867....
and
MichiganMichigan is governed as a republic, with three branches of government: the executive branch consisting of the Governor of Michigan and the other independently elected constitutional officers; the legislative branch consisting of the House of Representatives and Senate; and the judicial branch...
, and
federal governmentThe federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
s of
CanadaThe Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
and the United States determine the exact location of a future border crossing, with the City of Windsor's "GreenLink" proposal being the preferred option.
In 2010, The Windsor Port Authority, Borealis Infrastructure, and Canadian Pacific announced plans to construct a new rail tunnel compatible with double stacked trains. The initiative is known as the Continental Rail Gateway.