and Hudson Rivers were marvels of engineering when first constructed. The Holland Tunnel is the oldest of the vehicular tunnels, opening to great fanfare in 1927 as the first mechanically ventilated underwater tunnel. The Queens Midtown Tunnel was opened in 1940 to relieve the congestion on the city's bridges. Each of its tubes were designed wider than the Holland Tunnel in order to accommodate the wider cars of the period. When the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel opened in 1950, it was the longest continuous underwater vehicular tunnel in North America, a title it still holds. The Lincoln Tunnel has three tubes linking midtown Manhattan to New Jersey, a configuration that provides the flexibility to provide four lanes in one direction during rush hours, or three lanes in both direction. All four underwater road tunnels were built by Ole Singstad: the Holland Tunnel's original chief engineer Clifford Milburn Holland died, as did his successor, Milton H. Freeman, after which Singstad became chief engineer, finishing the Holland Tunnel and then building the remaining tunnels. East River From south to north: Harlem River From south to north: Hudson River From south to north: Newtown Creek Bridges and tunnels spanning land only Park Avenue Tunnel (33rd–40th Streets), Park Avenue Viaduct, and Park Avenue Tunnel (45th–97th Streets), Manhattan Battery Park Underpass, Manhattan Cobble Hill Tunnel, Brooklyn First Avenue Tunnel from 42nd Street to 47th Street, Manhattan Seeley Street Bridge over Prospect Avenue, Brooklyn Trinity Place Bridge, Manhattan Seneca Village Tunnel at 85th St., Central Park Glade Arch bridge, between 77th and 78th Sts., Central Park Subway tunnel, between 57th Street off 7th Avenue, 63rd Street, and Lexington Avenue, Central Park (F and Q) Bridges and tunnels by use The relative average number of inbound vehicles between 5 a.m. and 11 a.m. to Midtown and Lower Manhattan is: Queensboro Bridge: 31,000 Lincoln Tunnel: 25,944 Brooklyn Bridge: 22,241 Williamsburg Bridge: 18,339 Queens-Midtown Tunnel: 17,968 Holland Tunnel: 16,257 Brooklyn Battery Tunnel: 14,496 Manhattan Bridge: 13,818 See also List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in New York (state) List of tunnels documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in New York (state) List of fixed crossings of the East River List of crossings of the Harlem River List of fixed crossings of the Hudson River List of bridges in Pittsburgh References New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT). "Movable Bridges in the Bronx." Accessed 2015-08-25. External links