Rimutaka Tunnel The first shot was fired in 1948 when the Public Works Department started the tunnel with bores of at the western end and at the eastern end. A contract for completing the tunnel was let to a consortium of Morrison Knudsen Inc. and Downer and Company on 7 May 1951. The work commenced at the west end in July 1951 and at the east end in August. The contract was expected to be completed in four years, but the headings met on 20 April 1954 with the concrete lining finished a month later. New Zealand Railways took possession of the
The Florida Interurban Railway and Tunnel Company The Florida Interurban Railway and Tunnel Company The Florida Interurban Railway and Tunnel Company was incorporated in 1912 by the Bates Real Estate Interests and partners, which had extensive backgrounds in railroading with the Seaboard Air Line Railroad. It is not known if the company was a 'front' for Seaboard expansion into new markets but the use of a front company has been a common practice in Florida. The railway was to link Jacksonville with both St. Augustine and Pablo Beach (later named: Jacksonville Beach) with a 45-mile rail network. The tunnel would have had the additional bonus of being