Yerba Buena Tunnel for kids
The Tunnel Bigger Than Any Other. A true story near San Francisco, CA, told for kids 6-8.
Read along
Hold on tight, we're going into a tunnel on an island! This is the Yerba Buena Tunnel, and the cars go through it on two floors, one on top of the other, like a sandwich! When the Bay Bridge opened, this was the biggest tunnel of its kind in the whole world.
It's so big that it holds ten lanes of cars, and it connects two parts of the Bay Bridge, like a hug in the middle! Inside, the sound changes. Everything goes hum, hum, hum.
Here's your job. When we go in, say Whoooa and listen to your voice echo. Who has the loudest echo in the car?
Quiz the back seat
How are the cars arranged inside the tunnel?
Show the answer
On two floors. Two floors! One deck sits on top of the other, and each deck carries cars.
3 fun facts
- The Yerba Buena Tunnel is part of the Bay Bridge on Yerba Buena Island.
- It carries ten lanes of Interstate 80 on two decks.
- At the Bay Bridge opening in 1936, it was the world's largest-bore tunnel.
For grown-ups
Written with AI from public sources, then checked claim by claim against the sources below before it was published; stories that don't pass stay off the app and this site. Narration is pre-recorded, and nothing you do on this page is tied to your kids.
Sources
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Town and county names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).