The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced plans to develop a tunnel management system for the nation's highway and transit tunnels.

The department's Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will work together to produce a complete inventory of the nation's highway and transit tunnels, lay out procedures for proper inspection and record-keeping, and provide guidance for proper maintenance and rehabilitation techniques to help ensure safe and efficient tunnels in the future. The two agencies also will work with Gannett Fleming, Inc., an engineering and planning firm. The tunnel management system is scheduled to be completed in 2002.
Some tunnel owners and operators, such as states, cities and other organizations, already have tunnel management systems. For example, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which manages the Holland and Lincoln tunnels, has a tunnel management program. However, no national guidance for the nation’s some 400 highway-related tunnels and 655 miles of transit tunnels now exists. The U.S. Department of Transportation's new tunnel management guide will assemble the best practices from all available sources.
FTA Acting Deputy Administrator Hiram Walker said the nation's highway and transit tunnels have performed well and are safe, but they are beginning to show their age. A recent FTA report rated the condition of 28 percent of transit underground structures as "substandard" or "poor."