Loading Plan an Anchorage Run…
Plan a round trip through the tunnel: when to leave to reach Anchorage in time, and the last way home tonight so you are not stranded.
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Whittier has one road in and out — the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel — and no grocery store and no hospital, so most trips mean driving to Anchorage and back through a one-lane tunnel that closes every night. It is the published schedule, not a live feed — trains and weather shift the times, so check the official status before you rely on it.
Times are worked out from your device’s clock against the published schedule.
This is the schedule — not a live feed
Beyond the tunnel it is the Portage spur and the Seward Highway into Anchorage — give yourself about an hour of driving each way once you are through, more in winter or heavy traffic.
| Season | Dates | Open | Last way home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Summer hours | May 1 – September 30 | 5:30 AM – 11:15 PM | 10:30 PM |
| Winter hours | October 1 – April 30 | 7:00 AM – 10:45 PMGates are locked at 11:00 pm. | 10:30 PM |
The tunnel is one lane, shared with the Alaska Railroad, so traffic takes turns. Each hour, cars head toward Whittier in the :30–:45 window and toward Portage and Anchorage in the :00–:15 window. Aim to be in the staging area about 10 minutes before your opening, and allow 20–30 minutes to get all the way through.
When it is at or below freezing, the tunnel opens only for the last 5 minutes of each window instead of the usual 15 — so be at the staging area early.
Trains and weather come first
Live temperature by Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).
Last way home today: 10:30 PM
Leave Anchorage by 9:25 PM to make it