Robin Scheswohl captured this image inside the New Irvington Tunnel in the Sunol Valley. From her vantage point inside the Vargas East Tunnel section, Scheswohl pointed her camera west toward sunlight streaming down the Vargas Shaft—the brightly lit area in the background.
Scheswohl regularly photographs the more than 80 projects undertaken by San Francisco's Water System Improvement Program to upgrade the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System. The New Irvington Tunnel will run 3.5 miles and have an internal diameter between 8.5 ft and 10.5 ft. Hole-through is expected this summer.
Built by Southland/Tutor Perini Joint Venture, the $319-million tunnel will provide a seismically designed connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to Bay Area water distribution systems.
Following the hole-through, miners will prepare the tunnel for the installation of 8.5-ft-dia steel pipe, installed in 50-ft sections and welded together inside the tunnel.
Photographer: Robin Scheswohl
Submitted By: San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Photo Archives, San Francisco
