That's just nutty and random...especially so close to a site where there are UP police (just west of the I Street bridge) it seems like the engineer should have called it in, or at least called it in to the conductor, before walking out to yell at people.

They aren't really "tunnels" per se, they are actually the spaces between buildings and the edge of the street. They weren't connected to each other: as the illustration shows, they went underneath the sidewalks around blocks but generally didn't cross streets. There are all sorts of urban myths about secret tunnels, underground gambling dens, etcetera, but not a lot of basis in fact--and downtown development has destroyed a lot of the evidence in either case. Consider that since that story was written in 2003, several city blocks of the remaining passageways have been destroyed.

Depending on the block, small spaces and gross smells abound. In the portions that are reachable in the downtown area, many are used as shelters or toilets by homeless, and as they are a low point they tend to collect rainwater, garbage and sewer run-off. There are some portions that are pretty well-preserved and inaccessible, which are most likely to be included on such a tour.

Hello to the sacforums... I am a local freelance writer, Sacramento historian, and neighborhood activist.