The Adra Tunnel is a part of the Kettle Valley Railway that has been falling into ruins for decades.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen
August 31, 2022 - 7:00 AM
A plan is underway to restore the Adra Tunnel, a relic of the Kettle Valley Railway in the hills above Naramata that has been sitting derelict for decades.
The 483-metre-long tunnel was first excavated between 1913 and 1914, according to a news release from the Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen.
It was in service as part of the KVR until service ended in the 1970s and timber supports began deteriorating after rail operations ceased. The KVR lands were purchased by the province in 1990.
The tunnel was closed to the public in the early 1990s when conditions became unstable. In 2010 and again in 2012, fires that were set deliberately destroyed the remaining timber supports, worsening the tunnel’s stability further.
READ MORE: Trail work begins on KVR between Naramata and Kelowna
Whether or not it’s technically and financially feasible to reopen the tunnel will be studied by the RDOS, Rec Sites and Trails B.C., and several local contractors.
“The RDOS believes the tunnel, if reopened, will bring long-term benefits to residents, tourists, and local businesses,” area E director Karla Kozakevich said in the release.
The plan to study the tunnel will require debris to be cleared out in order for a rock structure survey to be conducted.
Crews will begin studying the tunnel in mid-September. The bypass will remain open to trail users while work is active.
Another historical tunnel of the KVR trail, known as Little Tunnel, is one of Naramata's iconic attractions.
The Kettle Valley Railway's Little Tunnel near Naramata.
(DAN WALTON / iNFOnews.ca)
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