National Tunnel on Montour Trail closed due to deteriorating ceiling
Temporary, long-term repairs planned for 112-year-old pass through
The National Tunnel, which is considered one of the most picturesque features on the Montour Trail, was closed earlier this month after an inspection revealed severe deterioration in the ceiling near the western portal.
The Montour Trail Council closed the 112-year-old tunnel indefinitely Nov. 11 following the inspection as the nonprofit now considers making temporary and long-term repairs in order to be able to eventually reopen it to cyclists and pedestrians who use that portion of the trail through Cecil Township.
“We did a cursory inspection of the National Tunnel and it appeared to be all right. Nothing urgent,” Montour Trail Council Board President Julian Wolfe said. “But we noticed some deterioration in the western third of the tunnel. (The engineers) said they were very surprised how much of that portion of the tunnel had deteriorated … and they advised us to close the tunnel.”
The 600-foot-long National Tunnel opened in 1913 for the Montour Railroad and burrows below Klinger Road. Located at the 25-mile marker nearly in the exact middle of the 60-mile trail that travels from Coraopolis to Clairton with various spurs, the tunnel is a popular attraction with its curved layout.
Signs announcing the closure are now placed about a half-mile from both sides of the portal, along with additional signs alerting people of the dangerous conditions inside the tunnel. Construction barricades are placed at the portals to keep people from going inside, although large cracks can be plainly seen embedded in the ceiling with some debris collapsed onto the paved trail below.
The trail in that section is closed and the council is urging people to merely turn around rather than using nearby public roads as a detour.
Wolfe said they hope to examine the deterioration with 3-D penetrating radar imagery, which will give them an idea of what needs to be done to stabilize the ceiling. He suspects they will install shoring towers on one-third of the western side of the tunnel by the end of the year, and then have engineers determine whether it is safe to reopen.
“Then we’ll bring the engineers in and determine if we’re going to be able to reopen the tunnel. I can’t say for sure,” Wolfe said. “Once the shoring towers are erected, the engineers will go in there and make an assessment. We need people with the knowledge of tunnels, especially with early 1900s railroad tunnels.”
But he expects that more robust work will be needed, such as building a steel rink-like liner to support the ceiling, much like the council did in 2023 and 2024 when it repaired the Greer Tunnel on the trail in neighboring Peter Township. That project cost about $1 million and installed 120 feet of metal liner, while the National Tunnel would require repairs to about 220 feet with a price tag Wolfe estimates would be above $2.5 million.
“That’s a huge lift for a nonprofits and volunteer organization that doesn’t get tax funds,” Wolfe said.
He said the council plans to launch a massive fundraising campaign to help pay for the project, and will also see if state and federal grants are available to help offset the costs to repair the tunnel. Wolfe, who added that the previous repairs to the Greer Tunnel will be a “good template” for this larger project, said major preservation work such as this is just part of maintaining the trail system that is beloved by so many people in the community.
“It’s in a section that is very heavily used and enjoyed by the trail users,” Wolfe said. “It’s highly regrettable, but with our experience with Greer, it’s old infrastructure and has to be tended to. … It’s incumbent on us to maintain the critical infrastructure, and this is what needs to be done.”
More information on the fundraising campaign and status of the tunnel will be posted to the trail’s website at www.montourtrail.org and on the nonprofit’s Facebook group at Montour Trail Enthusiasts.