Recently opened tunnel offers visitors fresh views of Niagara Falls

NIAGARA FALLS, Ontario — A recently opened tourist attraction at Niagara Falls is generating a great deal of interest.

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Niagara Parks unveiled the second phase of “The Tunnel” on July 1 -- Canada Day -- a 2,198-foot tunnel built on the Canadian side of the falls, CNN reported.

The tunnel winds through a former hydroelectric station to an outdoor viewing platform, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Tourists can enter the tunnel at the Niagara Parks Power Station, WGRZ-TV reported. After visiting the power station, visitors can travel down a 180-foot glass elevator to the tunnel, which leads to the base of the Canadian side of the falls, according to the television station.

Phase one of the station opened in 2021, WGRZ reported.

According to the attraction’s website, the tunnel was originally excavated in 1901, with workers using lanterns, primitive forms of dynamite, pickaxes and shovels.

The new viewing platform offers new views of the lower Niagara River, with “unparalleled views” of the Canadian Horseshoe Falls and the American Falls, according to the website.

The power station operated from 1905 until 2006, CNN reported. It diverted water from the Niagara River to run giant generators that provided electrical power to the Buffalo area.

Marcelo Gruosso, senior director of engineering and operations with the Niagara Parks Commission, has been involved with the project since the idea was floated in 2017, according to the cable news outlet.

“The plant started out with two generators and, by 1924, all 11 were installed, which you see here today,” Gruosso told CNN. “The tunnel held 71,000 gallons of water that moved at nine meters per second.”

Built like a fortress, the tunnel is made up of four layers of brick and 18 inches of concrete, and is surrounded by shale.

“It’s amazing what they did with no electricity,” Gruosso told CNN.

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