Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-11-24
Public In vited to Free Inspection Trip Friday
For Dedication of New Tunnel in Baltimore
BY ALEX r. PRESTON
Star Stan Correspondent

BALTIMORE, Now %. -
Everybody in Warrington.
Maryland. and in fact! the pub
lie generally, is invited to make
a free inspection of the new
$3.50 million Baltimore Harbor
Tunnel on the eve of its official
opening Saturday.
The Maryland State Roads
Commission plans I'd welcome
q huge crowd to celebrate the
elimination of one Of the worst
traffic bottleneck On the East
Coast.
Following formal dedication
ceremonies Nv Gov. McKeldin
and Baltimore Mayor Thomas
D'Alesandro at $50 pm. Fri
day, the huge twin-tube ia
cility will be thrown open to
the public until about pm.
This will be the only time
the public will be allowed to
walk through the tunnel. A
fleet of rs buses will be on
hand to pick up pedestrians
who may tire o. the trip before
they get all the way through
the 6,298-foot underwater Sec
ton.
Bus Trips for Visitors
With no provision for public
parking facilities either at the
tunnel portals or along the
more than II miles of approach
roads, visitors arriving here by
car are expected to park near
anyone of the traffic inter-
changes along the approach
roads. Buses will transport
them free Of charge to the
tunnel. a Roads Commission
spokesman says.
There are IL access points,
or traffic interchangeS, on the
approach roads. near which
motorists may leave their cars
If they intend to visit the prof.
ect Friday afternoon. Those
points are:
Closed at S PM.
Washington boulevard at
Elkridge; Baltimore County
beltway at Lansdowne; Balti-
more Washington expressway;
Richie highway near Ordnance
road; Glen Burnie bypass con-
nection; Potee and Hanover
streets, Brooklyn; Frankfurst
avenue-Shell road, Fairfield;
Holabird avenue, Canton:
O'Donnel street; Lombard
street Eastern avenue). and
Pulaski highway Erdman ave-
nue..
About 5 pm. the tunnel will
be closed to the public so that
workmen can clean up and
have the facility ready for toll
traffic commencing at 1901 I'm.
Saturday.
Thereafter, the toll will be
40 cents per passenger car,
regardless Of the number of
passengers, with correspond
ingly higher rates for heavier
vehicles. A commuters book.
costing rs cents per trip and
to be used within 80 days. also
will be offered.
For years. Washington area
motorists travelling to the North
have found Baltimore street
traffic a nightmare. Opening
date of the tunnel was adj
vanced one day in anticipation
Of the heavy traffic for the
Army-Navy game on Saturday
at Philadelphia.
Speeds New York Traffic
Travel time through Balti-
more itself will be cut from be-
tween As minutes to an hour
down to five minutes-Wash-
ington motorists using the
Baltimore Washington express
way. for example. will find that
1t takes only IL minutes to
traverse the tunnel and APP
proach roads on either end be-
fore they are speeding north
ward on U. s. Route 40.
The Baltimore Harbor Tun-
mel is the latest toll facility to
help speed Washington area
traffic to New York. The total
charges for all such facilities
will be $3.40. divided as follows.
Baltimore Tunnel, 40 cents;
Susquehanna River Bridge. IS
cents: Delaware River Bridge.
rs cents: New Jersey turnpike
for its total length Of l18I
miles, Sl.75. and Holland or