Fantastic video. The price of the tour is extremely cheap for such a long tour and there’s so much to see and learn. It’s approaching not far off 100 years old now and in many respects, is a working museum. Much of the old running gear would probably last another 100 years. Vintage British engineering at its best 👍
I travelled through this in about 1955 with my uncle, who was the electrical engineer for the tunnel. A distant memory. Anyone remember the red police landrovers? Many years later I worked for Nuttalls, who built the Wallasey tunnel at the end of the 60s and once travelled on The Mole as it cut its way under the Mersey.
I worked on the sky drama bulletproof in the an old unused part of the tunnel on the birkenhead side, near where they keep the mersey ferries at night. I dont know if you visited it when making this vlog, but its really scary, got old abandoned vehicles and all kinds down there from year ago. It was hard film shoot because had to commute and walk back several times to where the film unit was depp down the tunnel and then back out to units where our camera truck was. It was such a draining experience.
I worked down there in the 90's...installing and securing where the money came in with bespoke cages, also I help make and install the manual barriers at the pay booths that are still there.
Did Alison mention about one of the original moles in the Queensway Tunnel, that is still positioned in a side tunnel off the main one? It was too big to return back so they created a side tunnel and left it there. One of my exes worked for the tunnels many years ago, and she was given a behind the scenes tour as part of her induction and i remember her mentioning this to me. If i remember correctly there are some pipes that actually run through the machine as it was cheaper to do this than build the pipes around it. A great finish to another excellent series. Thanks Darren
Hi Daz, I once drove through the Tyne tunnel with a smashed side window (flamin scroates after my stereo)!!! Yikes I was so light headed from the fumes. I guess the ventilation wasn't as good as the Mersey tunnels 🧐 Cheers DougT
I certainly did enjoy this little series, Darren - and a vote of thanks to Alison, too. I shall never look at a road tunnel in quite the same way again!
Good to know for everyone that travels through the tunnel regularly, what the refuges look like and what's in it. If they're ever in an emergency, they know what to expect there.
Most excellent, Darren. Great to go right into the very basement of the tunnel, and hearing all that traffic above! Some amazing passageways along the whole length, and it's just unimaginable how big the diameter of the whole structure is. Many thanks to the lady for the permission to go on this grand tour, and to yourself for producing this fabulous series.
Many thanks; really enjoyed your 3-parter on the Mersey Tunnel. Thx too to Alison for hosting you. I'll deffo be going on the tour next time I'm up that way.
Hi Darren, talking about old caretakers homes there is one built on the flat part of the roof of the Cunard building. It was a bungalow type of building. I once worked for a company in there and often went up to the roof level. Maybe it's just used as a storage space these days. It might even show on Google earth? Cheers DougT
It must be really something to go to these hidden rooms and corridors that we would never see or think about seeing for ourselves. Amazing! I do love your Videos Darren 👍😊
Incredible Darren. What a superb adventure. You certainly loved every second. You could hear it in your voice, thank you for taking us with you. I never knew anything like this existed. Amazing. What a work went into this tunnel.
Excellent video, i went through the tunnels for the first time the other day, i didn't know they did tours until i looked on line ,will definitely do one when back in Liverpool
Such a great video, im a local & loved this, i didn't know they did tours, this answered so many of the questions i had about the workings & construction of the tunnels, thanks m8
Many thanks to Alison for showing You (and therefore us) around the tunnel and associated buildings, I've never been to Liverpool or Birkenhead nor am I likely to, so this series has truly been an eye-opener.
Hi Darren, that was really a interesting video, and thanks to your guide Alison for taking you round. The tour sounds like its really good value for money. Interesting to see the refuges that were put in place following the fire in the Alps. Good luck from Spain!!
I visited the tunnel many years back and was absolutely fascinated by it. I had these awful fears of pitch black vast underground spaces but was pleasantly surprised to se everything was lit except the in coming fresh air shafts which are dark except for a faint bit of light as you look up the shafts. Also it looks very clean and the concrete despite being over 85 years old still looks fresh and modern. Wouldn’t like to see the exhaust shafts though, I bet they are pretty shitty with all the crap the cars.
Great video! I wasn't aware they did tours but will definitely be booking now I know, so cheap as well! If you haven't done it the St Johns tower tour is good, some great views of the city from up there.
Such an awsome and fascinating series of videos, growing up in Liverpool I was always fascinated by the Queens way tunnel. My cousin and I would always look out for the sealed off tunnel entrances to the disused side tunnels and would imagine what it would be like to explore them. I always wondered what lay behind the many doors in the wall, and very much appreciated getting this glimpse of what actually lies behind, above and below this amazing feat of human strength, perseverance and ingenuity. Also I must have walked past that ticket kiosk so many times and I always wondered what it actually was, inversion had any idea that it was one of the original tunnel kiosks.
Great video, I spent a lot of time over 10yrs in and out of the tunnels for fire detection & suppression. Such a big place it had to have a resident fire engineer between this site and the Royal Liverpool Hospital.
I've driven through both road tunnels literally thousands of times over the years, on my way to work. I've never seen underneath. This was fascinating 👍
Just found your channel today, and am binge watching- these videos are right up my street aswell. if you go to Woodside Ferry on a weekend, there are trips on old electric tram to the tram museum in Birkenhead- very interesting.
Wow fascinating especially the ventilation system. Smaller tunnels like those on North Wales Express way around Llandudno just seem to have large roof mounted fans just blowing air through admittedly they are a lot smaller.
Did this tour back in 1995 as part of my engineering YTS! I vaguely remember some of these rooms however I do remember being shown the tunnel below the road deck, now I hope my mind isn’t playing tricks on me after all this time but I do remember seeing a rail track being down there and a inspection unit on the track that would run along the track allowing engineers to inspect any damage or wear and tear of the road deck and the tour guide at the time told us the unit was a model T ford that was modified to run on track! A great video by the way 👏
You’re not imagining it, I’ve seen it too in the mid-90s. Not sure if it was a model T but certainly a very old car with most of its bodywork removed. I’d imagine it’s still down there.
I wish the tunnel tours would show the fans at their full 100% rated operating speed and not just half speed. But i guess they keep them at 50% or lower during tours due to concerns about fear of beeing sucked in.
Fascinating. In the mid 1990s, I rescued some old DEC computers from there... I can't remember if they ran the toll booth systems, or controlled and monitored the ventilation, or both, but there was a DEC pdp-8/L, the remains of a pdp-8/I, and one or two pdp-11/34s. I think I got some of the disk packs that went with them, and even some paper tape software.
Just came in the house from picking weeds in the back yard "garden" for a break and what was waiting on the computer just for me???? A new AdventureMe Vid, happy times.... That's a bargain price for the tour.... Thank for all your walking and climbing the stairs for us......
Hi Darren, superb stuff, thanks to alison too, but I was thinking that the two way traffic in the tunnel is so dangerous especially with no central barrier. Head on crashes for certain.
Oh ace 😁 We’re just about to have a late tea, as soon as we’re done I’m on this. I’ll no doubt edit this comment in a bit. I’ll just say while I remember I drove right past emley tower 2 weeks ago, I thought of your video, you can’t get the scale from a video, that thing is gargantuan!!!
@@AdventureMe Certainly a sight to behold when you’re up close. I’m fond of concrete structures. I’ve got a little video on my channel of the old and new Edinburgh old road bridges leaving out from Moffat 🏴 I did the other day while we was away. Old stone and concrete running side by side, albeit the old bridge hasn’t been used for years. I’m a crap narrator though 😂
Absolutely fascinating 👏 It's interesting to note that the Tunnel still uses 1970s MPTE Verona Green paintwork. It was a trendy colour in the 70s but is rather vomit-inducing nowadays. It's a pity they have not rebranded to the current Mersey Travel yellow and silver(grey).
I remember Liverpool buying all those tramrails for the Metro. They obviously sold them on to more enlightened and ever-expanding systems elsewhere. What a pity.
Hello Darren glad to have you back doing your interest vidio of Mersey side tunnel did you have a good holiday lots of love to you take care stay safe xx
Are they benches along the central part of the lower bore section? Looks like it could have been used as an air raid shelter (or at least prepared for that)
@@AdventureMe they were built into the wall running the entire length of the lower section by the refuges stations with numbers above it every foot or two. Kind of hard to miss :)
£8 that is a great price, the way the traffic goes in opposite directions in Queensway tunnel and the newer Kingsway tunnel has separate tunnels for traffic
So, t'original start shaft:- pick, shovel and, happen, steam shovelled descent ¿? Also, remember when Queens way was opened, half the population from Wallasey tripped across The Mersey to work each day and back, so the trade aart from the ferries existed to sort demand by trams, which were all over Liverpool and the northern Wirral back then....
Fantastic! A remarkable piece of tunnel engineering. The dimensions - 44ft dia - excavated, I assume, without tunnel boring machinery, are mind boggling. Really enjoyable video! Thanks!
