The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects Hudson Square and Lower Manhattan in New York City in the east to Jersey City, New Jersey, in the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and carries Interstate 78. The New Jersey side of the tunnel is the eastern terminus of New Jersey Route 139. It consists of two tubes: the eastbound tube is a toll road, while the westbound tube is toll-free. The Holland Tunnel is one of three vehicular crossings between Manhattan and New Jersey; the two others are the Lincoln Tunnel and George Washington Bridge. The Holland Tunnel is named for Clifford Milburn Holland, its initial chief engineer, who died suddenly in 1924 prior to its opening. It was the world's first mechanically ventilated tunnel, with a ventilation system designed by Ole Singstad, who oversaw the tunnel's completion. The tubes are made of cast-iron rings covered by concrete and measuring 29.5 feet (9.0 m) in diameter, running parallel under the river. Each tube fits two lanes and has 12 feet 6 inches (3.81 m) of vertical clearance. At the western end of the tunnel, the westbound tube exits onto 14th Street, while the eastbound tube is accessed from Boyle Plaza on 12th Street. At the eastern end, the eastbound tube exits onto the Holland Tunnel Rotary (occupying the site of the former St. John's Park Terminal), while the westbound tube is accessed from Freeman Plaza. Plans for a fixed vehicular crossing over the Hudson River were first drawn up in 1906. Disagreements prolonged the planning process until 1919, when a tunnel under the river was approved in lieu of a bridge. Construction of the Holland Tunnel started in 1920, and it opened in 1927. At the time of its opening, it was the longest continuous underwater tunnel for vehicular traffic in the world. There were plans to connect the tunnel to highways on both ends, but the highway on the New York side, the Lower Manhattan Expressway, was never completed. Tolls were collected in both directions until 1970, when tolls for westbound traffic were abolished. The tunnel was refurbished in the 1980s and the 2020s.
Description The Holland Tunnel is operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. It consists of a pair of parallel tubes underneath the Hudson River. The tunnel was designed by Clifford Milburn Holland, the project's chief engineer, who died in October 1924, before it was completed. He was succeeded by Milton Harvey Freeman, who died less than a year after Holland did. Ole Singstad then oversaw the completion of the tunnel. The tunnel was designated a National Historic Civil and Mechanical Engineering Landmark in 1982 and a National Historic Landmark in 1993. Emergency services at the Holland Tunnel are provided by the Port Authority Police Department, who are stationed at the Port Authority's crossings.
Tubes
Materials and dimensions Each tube has a 29.5-foot (9.0 m) diameter, and the two tubes run 15 feet (4.6 m) apart under the Hudson River. The exteriors of each tube are composed of a series of cast iron rings, each of which comprises 14 curved steel pieces that are each 6 feet (1.8 m) long. The steel rings are covered by a 19-inch-thick (48 cm) layer of concrete. Each tube provides a 20-foot (6.1 m) roadway with two lanes and 12 feet 6 inches (3.81 m) of vertical clearance. The north tube is 8,558 feet (2,608 m) between portals, while the south tube is slightly shorter, at 8,371 feet (2,551 m). If each tube's immediate approach roads are included, the north tube is 9,210 feet (2,807 m) long and the south tube 9,275 feet (2,827 m) long. Most vehicles carrying hazmats, trucks with more than three axles, and vehicles towing trailers cannot use the tunnel. There is a width limit of 8 feet (2.4 m) for vehicles entering the tunnel. Both tubes' underwater sections are 5,410 feet (1,650 m) long and are situated in the silt beneath the river. The lowest point of the roadways is about 93 feet (28.3 m) below mean high water. The lowest point of the tunnel ceiling is about 72 feet (21.9 m) below mean high water. The tubes descend at a maximum grade of 4.06% and ascend at a grade of up to 3.8%. The tubes stretch an additional 1,000 feet (300 m) from the eastern shoreline to the New York portals, and 500 feet (150 m) from the western shoreline to the New Jersey portals. These sections of the tunnel are more rectangular in shape, since they were built as open cuts that were later covered over. The walls and ceiling are furnished with glazed ceramic tiles, which were originally engineered to minimize staining. The majority of the tiles are white, but there is a two-tile-high band of yellow-orange tiles at the bottom of each tube's walls, as well as two-tile-high band of blue tiles on the top. The northern tube, which carries westbound traffic, originates at Broome Street in Lower Manhattan between Varick and Hudson Streets. It continues to 14th Street east of Marin Boulevard in Jersey City. The southern tube, designed for eastbound traffic, originates at 12th Street east of Marin Boulevard, and surfaces at the Holland Tunnel Rotary in Manhattan. The entrance and exit ramps to and from each portal are lined with granite and are 30 feet (9.1 m) wide. Although the two tubes' underwater sections are parallel and adjacent to each other, the tubes' portals on either side are located two blocks apart in order to reduce congestion on each side. The Holland Tunnel's tubes initially contained a road surface made of Belgian blocks and concrete. This was replaced with asphalt in 1955. Each tube contains a catwalk on its left (inner) side, raised 4 feet (1.2 m) above the roadway. Five emergency-exit cross-passages connect the two tubes' inner catwalks. When the Holland Tunnel opened, the catwalk was equipped with police booths and a telephone system, stationed at intervals of 250 feet (76 m).
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