Beaucatcher Tunnel carries
U.S. Route 70 (US 70) and
US 74A through
Beaucatcher Mountain
Beaucatcher Mountain is located in a portion of the Appalachian Mountain Range known as the Great Craggy Mountains, in Asheville, North Carolina. Its name was said to have been coined in the mid-1800s by James W. Patton, who once teased his siste ...
in
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous cit ...
. Work on the tunnel was started in 1927 and completed in 1929. The tunnel has two lanes and sidewalks separated from the traffic lanes by concrete barriers. It was renovated in 2014 with new stone portals.
For the construction of
Interstate 240 on a parallel alignment two new tunnels were considered for the interstate route. In 1967 the North Carolina State Highway Commission endorsed an open cut through the mountain, which was projected to save $11.4 million over tunnel construction.
The four-mile project was completed October 31, 1980.
References
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Tunnels in North Carolina
Tunnels completed in 1929
U.S. Route 70
U.S. Route 74
Buildings and structures in Asheville, North Carolina