Eisenhower Tunnel

The Eisenhower Tunnel, officially the Eisenhower–Edwin C. Johnson Memorial Tunnel, is a dual-bore, four-lane vehicular tunnel in the western United States, approximately 60 miles west of Denver, Colorado. The tunnel carries Interstate 70 under the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains. With a maximum elevation of 11,158 feet above sea level, it is one of the highest vehicular tunnels in the world. The tunnel is the longest mountain tunnel and highest point on the Interstate Highway System. With the completion of the second bore in 1979, it was one of the last major pieces of the Interstate system to be completed. Opened in 1973, the westbound bore is named after Dwight D. Eisenhower, the U.S. President for whom the Interstate system is also named. The eastbound bore was completed in 1979 and is named for Edwin C. Johnson, a governor and U.S. Senator who lobbied for an Interstate Highway to be built across Colorado.

The Eisenhower Memorial Bore is 1.693 miles long, while the Edwin C. Johnson Memorial Bore is 1.697 miles long. The tunnels are sloped with a 1.64% grade, with an elevation of 11,013 feet at the east portal and 11,158 feet at the west portal. At the time of dedication, they were the highest vehicular tunnels in the world.

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