A tunnel is an underground or underwater structure, the main purpose of which is to ensure the movement of vehicles or the movement of water over long distances.

Since ancient times, tunnels (underground passages) have been common, although they were used mainly by people who secretly moved through them or hid from enemies.

Today, tunnels are built for various purposes, so they are classified according to their purpose: railway, automobile, sewer, water supply facilities and others.

The longest railway tunnel in the world

In 2017, the Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland is considered the longest railway tunnel in the world. In addition to setting a record for length, it is also defined as the deepest tunnel in the world, since the distance from the surface of the mountains in some places is equal to 2300 km.

The construction was carried out for 17 years, and the first projects appeared in 1947. The grand opening took place on June 1, 2016, although test movements around the facility have been launched since 2015. And since December 2016, the tunnel has been operated at full capacity.

The Gotthard Tunnel is laid under Saint Gotthard, a mountain pass in the Swiss Alps. Its length is equal to 57 km, and given that the tunnel consists of two parallel overpasses, the construction mileage doubles. On these two parallel shafts, movement is made in the opposite direction. High-speed trains reach speeds of up to 250 km/h, freight trains - 160 km/h.

When creating the tunnel project, technologies were used that ensure maximum safety during transportation. A system has been set up to evacuate people in case of an accident (one tunnel serves as an exit from another every 325 meters), and the availability of modern computer systems allows you to quickly respond to emerging problems. Also in the tunnel are emergency stations and mines. Its construction cost $12 billion.

As of 2017, 260 freight and 65 high-speed trains pass through the tunnel per day, with an average travel time of 20 minutes.

The longest road tunnel in the world

is a land of fjords and mountains. Its beauty is undeniable, but from a practical point of view, moving around Norway is extremely difficult, since you either have to overcome mountain ranges or use a ferry even for short distances. The situation stabilized when active construction of underground facilities began in Norway.

Lerdal Tunnel (Lerdal) is the longest road tunnel in the world. Its construction began in 1995, and in 2000 the facility was already put into operation. The length of Lerdal is 24.5 km, however, it will take 20 minutes to overcome it, since it is forbidden to develop a high speed in the tunnel. Considering the monotony of the road, special measures for the safety of passengers were applied during the design.

To ensure the driver's attentiveness, "curved" sections were built on a straight road, and after overcoming a distance of 6 km, you can relax in artificially created caves (grottoes). In the same section of the tunnel, a car is supposed to turn around if necessary. The developers paid great attention to the lighting of the object. There is white illumination throughout, and the caves are highlighted with blue-yellow light, reminiscent of a sunrise. Also, noise strips are installed on the track to attract the attention of the driver.

In Lerdal, there were no options for equipping emergency exits, so telephones were installed at a distance of 250 meters to call for emergency help. Fire extinguishers are placed along the entire length of the route, and if an emergency occurs, drivers are warned about this by activated signs “Turn around to the exit”. A special computer system counts cars at the entrance and exit, so in the event of an emergency, it is reliably known whether the cars remained inside the tunnel.

Thanks to Lerdal, the journey time was halved, previously it took 50 minutes to overcome this distance through the mountains. However, many prefer the "traditional" mode of travel, finding the Lerdal Tunnel too monotonous to travel.

The longest tunnels in Russia

The Severo-Muisky tunnel is considered the longest railway tunnel in Russia. Its length equates to 15.3 km, and the construction took 26 years, including serious unplanned interruptions in work.

The North Muya tunnel is part of the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM), its construction began in 1977, and the official opening took place in 2003. Theoretically, the service life is calculated for 100 years.

The tunnel is located in a seismic zone equivalent to 9 points. Sometimes there were two strong earthquakes a day, after which the construction of the facility was stopped for a long period of time. Difficulties arose both because of the harsh local climate and because of the mountainous terrain. The combination of these factors significantly hampered the construction, affecting the timing and financial part. In total, 9 billion rubles were spent on the construction of the tunnel.

Today, an average of 15 trains pass through the Severo-Muisky tunnel, with a travel time of 15 minutes (previously this distance was covered in 1.5 hours). The developed speed of trains varies from 48 to 56 km/h.

However, the difficult natural conditions in the area of ​​the tunnel are monitored around the clock by geologists to prevent serious accidents.

If we talk about road tunnels in Russia, then the leading position in terms of length is occupied by the Gimrinsky tunnel, built in Dagestan. Its length is 4303 meters, and the hourly workload is 4000 cars moving along 4 different lanes.

The construction of the tunnel began in 1979, and in 1991 it gradually began to be put into operation, while continuing to carry out construction work. In 2007, the tunnel was closed due to terrorist attacks, however, since 2012 it has been considered officially open again.

The Gimrinsky tunnel is one of the most modern, because during the reconstruction, expensive equipment from Italy was used, made specifically for this project. A seismic laboratory is located next to the tunnel to prevent emergencies. Each section of the tunnel has lighting, it is also equipped with automatic fire alarms, emergency telephones, and more. The construction estimate amounted to 10 billion rubles.

In the capital of Russia, the Lefortovo tunnel occupies the first place in terms of length, 3.2 km long and 7 lanes for traffic. It is located in the southeastern part of Moscow, known as the "tunnel of death".

This nickname has a simple explanation. The hourly workload of the tunnel is 3,500 vehicles, but during peak hours the number doubles. This factor leads to a large number of fatal accidents, so the tunnel is considered the most dangerous in Russia.

The longest tunnels in Europe and new construction projects

In addition to the Gotthard Tunnel, described above, the Eurotunnel, the second longest in Europe, is of particular interest. The length of the Eurotunnel is 51 km, 39 km of which lie under the English Channel. Thanks to this tunnel, Europe is connected to the UK, and in America it is recognized as "one of the wonders of the world." The average fare is 17 euros per person.

The Lechberg in Switzerland (34 km), the Guadarrama tunnel (28.4 km) and others are also very long. However, every year new large-scale tunnel projects appear, striving to set world records in their length.

The most interesting project of the future is the Transatlantic Tunnel. Its purpose is to build a route from North America to Europe, passing under the Atlantic Ocean. According to the plan, the Transatlantic Tunnel will be 88 times the length of the Gotthard Tunnel. True, by 2017 only the construction project was developed in detail, the start of work was postponed indefinitely.

The main problem of construction is financing. Average cost estimates range from $175 billion to $12 trillion. Therefore, it is not known when the planned project will be put into practice.

Tunnels are real architectural marvels that have been developed and improved since ancient times. The tunnels probably originate from the caves that ancient people used as dwellings. If we look to the future, to a more civilized period, we can see that the tunnels are used as secret passages, usually underground. They were used to hide from enemies. Nowadays, tunnels are being built for completely different purposes. In this collection, I will tell you about the longest tunnels in the world and their purpose.

1. So, the longest tunnel in the world at the moment is in Japan. This railway tunnel is 53,850 meters long. Just imagine how many days it will take to travel it on foot before you get to the other side.

The Seikan Tunnel is also the longest underwater tunnel in the world. After World War II, Japan felt the need to connect the islands of Hokkaido and Honshu so that the country was geographically unified. From its planning in 1946 to its official opening on March 13, 1988, it took over 40 years to complete. Construction cost a lot of money: ?538.4 billion, equivalent to $3.6 billion

Today, unfortunately, Seikan is not used as much as it used to be, because airline travel is both faster and cheaper. However, this building was one of the main reasons why Japan is strong and united to this day. It is worth mentioning that this tunnel will remain the longest until 2016, when the Gotthard Base Tunnel is built in Switzerland.

2. The Channel Tunnel, or - the longest international tunnel in the world, connects the United Kingdom and France with a 50,500 meter passage. The tunnel connects the cities of Folkestone in the UK and Calais in France. The tunnel also boasts the largest car-carrying train in the world called the Eurotunnel Shuttle.

The construction of the Channel Tunnel was put on hold for almost two hundred years from 1802, due to constant hesitation from the British and political instability. Ultimately, in 1988, construction began and ended fairly quickly in 1994. The Channel Tunnel was also one of the candidates for the list of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Undoubtedly, this great building played a key role in uniting Britain with the mainland, although from a material point of view it still remains unprofitable.

3. Compared to other tunnels Lötschberg tunnel(L?tschberg) is still quite young, it was completed in 2006, and officially opened in June 2007. The Lötschberg Tunnel is the longest tunnel in the world on land, is 34,700 meters long. The tunnel runs between the Swiss cantons of Bern and Valais and is used by freight and passenger trains. Thanks to the latest technology, the tunnel was built very quickly, in less than two years. More than 20,000 Swiss use it every week to take the shortest route to the Welsh thermal spas. Thanks to Lötschberg, traffic in this region has been significantly reduced, as previously trucks had to bypass Switzerland to get from Bern to Valais. Interestingly, the heat from the groundwater from the tunnel heats the Tropenhaus Frutigen greenhouse, where tropical fruits are grown.

4. in Norway - the longest road tunnel in the world, its length is as much as 24,000 meters, located in the county of Sogn og Fjordane. Until 1999, the Swiss Gotthard Road Tunnel was the longest road tunnel until Laerdal was built in 2000.

The Lardal Tunnel has been designed to modern standards. Unlike most tunnels, Laerdal is divided into four parts, each of which has a special lighting. The lighting effect mimics natural light at dawn and dusk. Also a positive thing is that you do not need to pay any money for travel

Driving through tunnels is always perceived in a special way, very exciting - you see how the headlights snatch out images and road signs, how the air rustles while driving fast and perceive the light at the end of the tunnel with special joy. We told you about the four longest tunnels in the world, we wish you to drive through each of them and get an unforgettable experience

07/29/2019 at 19:05 · VeraSchegoleva · 300

Top 10 longest road and rail tunnels in the world

Tunnels, railway or automobile, are built to connect cities located on different banks of a reservoir, on different sides of a mountain range, etc.

In most cases, construction involves enormous difficulties, but this does not prevent engineers from designing amazing roads, the distance of which can exceed the distance from Moscow to Zvenigorod.

In this compilation, we will talk about the ten longest road and rail tunnels in the world.

10. Lerdal Tunnel in Norway (24,510 m)

Lerdal Tunnel in Norway is located in the west of the country and connects the communes of Laerdal and Aurland. Its construction began in 1995 and lasted 5 years: during this time, workers managed to build a road through a height of up to 1,600 meters.

The tunnel is divided into 4 approximately equal sections by three grottoes (artificial caves), which are the main design feature. The caves were made so that drivers tired of many hours of driving could rest and relax a bit in order to continue the journey with renewed vigor.

9. Iwate-Ichinose in Japan (25,810 m)

Tunnel Iwate-Ichinose It is located 545 km from Tokyo Station on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line, halfway between the cities of Morioko and Hachinohe. It was launched in 2002 along with the railway line.

The maximum depth is about 200 meters, which makes it one of the deepest in the world. Initially, it was this tunnel that had the longest length (of the land ones), until in 2007 it was bypassed by the Swiss Lötschberg, which we will discuss in more detail below.

8. Hakkoda in Japan (26,455 m)

It is located in the central prefecture of Aomori in the north. It passes through the Hakkoda mountain range and links the village of Tenmabayashi with the city of Aomori.

Tunnel Hakkoda It is part of the northern extension of the Tohoku Shinkansen high-speed rail and is located between Shichinohe Towada and Shin Aomori stations.

The construction of the tunnel began in 1998 and continued until 2005, when it was partially put into operation. All work was completed in 2010.

7. Taihangshan in China (27,848 m)

Taihangshan is the third longest mountain railway tunnel in northern China after the New Guanjiao and Western Qinling tunnels. This is a double track tunnel that was built to allow the China Passenger Railway to cross the Taihang Mountains. The length of the left track is 27,839 m (17.298 miles) and the right track is 27,848 m (17.304 miles).

After the opening of the Taihang Tunnel and the construction of a high-speed railway, the travel time from Shijiazhuang to Taiyuan has been reduced many times: now you can get from one settlement to another not in 6 hours, as before, but in just an hour. Construction began on June 11, 2005, and the opening took place on December 22, 2007.

6. Guadarrama in Spain (28,377 m)

The Sierra de Guadarrama is a mountain range that forms the main eastern section of the mountain range system along the central part of the Iberian Peninsula. It is located between the Sierra de Gredos in the province of Ávila and the Sierra de Aillon in the province of Guadalajara.

Tunnel Guddarama runs through it and is intended for the movement of railway trains. It consists of two pipes: the western pipe is 28,407 m long and the eastern pipe is 28,418 m, which makes Guadarrama the longest in Spain, except for line 12 of the Madrid metro.

5. New Guan Jiao in China (32,645 m)

New Guan Jiao is located on Line 2 of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway in the Guang Jiao Mountains of Qinghai Province. It is a two-channel railway tunnel with two roads. The total length is 32.645 km (20.285 mi), making it the longest railway tunnel in China.

The Chinese Institute of Early Research and Design was responsible for the creation of the project, whose employees tried to make it as suitable as possible for the parallel movement of two trains at speeds up to 160 kilometers per hour (99 miles per hour).

It was assumed that the total duration of construction will be 5 years, but as a result, it was finally put into operation after 7 years.

4. Lötschberg in Switzerland (34,577 m)

Line Lötschberg located in Switzerland: it connects the city of Spitz in the district of Bern with Brig in the district of Valais. The construction of the railway track in these places was started in the middle of the 19th century: already in 1859, the first railway from Bern to Münsingen and Thun was opened here.

In the future, the line was repeatedly increased, expanded and modernized, until in 1913 it acquired a finished look. Of course, modern trains do not run on the rails of 1913, but the bulk of the construction work was carried out over a century ago, which makes the Lötschberg tunnel the oldest in our collection.

This place impresses not only with its length, but also with its beauty: the Bichtal bridge, the Ligelkin and Kander viaducts, the majestic Bernese Alps. If you go this way for the first time, then it is categorically not recommended to sleep: you will not see such splendor outside the window anywhere else.

3. Eurotunnel in France and Great Britain (50,450 m)

The railway tunnel links England's Folkestone and Kent with France's Coquelles and Pas de Calais near Calais in northern France. This is the only fixed connection between the islands of Great Britain and continental Europe.

At its lowest point, the tunnel runs 75 m below the seabed and 115 m below sea level. Train speed limit Eurotunnel is 160 kilometers per hour. After it was opened in 1994, it became possible to get to Paris from London in just 2 hours and 15 minutes, although the trains are no more than 35 minutes in the tunnel itself.

Interesting fact: in 1802, the French mining engineer Albert Mathieu-Favier put forward a proposal to build a tunnel under the English Channel with lighting from oil lamps for the movement of horse-drawn carts, and he also wanted to build an artificial one in the middle of the channel for changing horses. Mathieu-Favier's design called for a two-level structure with an upper tunnel used for transport and a lower one for underground watercourses. The project was never implemented, but subsequently the developments of Mathieu-Favier were used by his successors.

2. Seikan in Japan (53,850 m)

Seikan slightly longer than the Eurotunnel and has a section of 23.3 km under the seabed (total length of the underwater section is 37.5 km).

it's the same the deepest tunnel: it goes down 240 meters. Its implementation required a budget of 538.4 billion yen (about $3.6 billion), and Seikan was built from 1971 to 1983, although it was put into operation only in 1988.

1. Gotthard tunnel in Switzerland (57,091 m)

A European rail tunnel through the Alps in Switzerland, opened on June 1, 2016, broke the length record that had long been held by Seikan.

It is part of the New Alpine Rail Link (NRLA) project, which also includes the Ceneri Base Tunnel to the south (scheduled to open at the end of 2020) and the Lötschberg we have already mentioned.

Humanity can boast of great achievements. One of them is tunnels. These are truly marvels of architecture. Their development and improvement has always taken place and will always take place.

Who and when invented the tunnels is unknown. It is believed that such constructions originate from caves, which people in ancient times used as dwellings.

The modern role of buildings has changed somewhat. In the civilized period, tunnels are used as secret passages, underground. Often they were used for shelter from enemies.

In modern times, the role of tunnels has changed significantly. Now this is the main environment for high-speed movement. The structure of structures has a standard scheme in different countries. But here the length and equipment of such tunnels can differ significantly.

1. Gotthard Base Tunnel

Its length is 57.00 km. It is often referred to as the Gotthard Base Tunnel. Used as the main railway facility in Switzerland. Its length is the longest in the world.

If you include all the passages (pedestrian and service), its length will be about 152 km. The southern end of the structure is located near the village of Bodio, the northern end is near the village of Erstfed. The building was originally created for railway needs. With the help of such a tunnel, it was possible to create a message through the Alps.

At the moment, this message is closed - the opening of the structure is planned for the end of 2017. In general, the construction of the tunnel through the Alps lasted as much as 14 years.

2. Seikan

The length of the structure is almost 54 meters (53.9 meters). The longest underwater tunnel in the world. Built to communicate with the two Japanese islands of Hokkaido and Honshu.

In translation, its name means "Majestic spectacle" and this is true. The design has an underwater part (about 23.3 km), since the tunnel runs under the Sangai Strait.

3. Eurotunnel, 49.94 km long

The structure was laid under the English Channel. It connects Folkestone (Kent from the UK) and Calais (part of France).

The tunnel is not the longest in the world, but it has the longest underwater part (as much as 39 km, which is 14.7 km more than that of Seikan). The tunnel officially opened in 1994. Since then, it has been working flawlessly every day, ferrying millions of people across the canal.

4. Lötschberg, 34.70 km long

Representative of the longest land tunnel. It is located on the Bern-Milan line, in Switzerland. The design was created in the middle of the 20th century. She managed to connect the region of Bern and Interlaken with the zone of Brig and Zermatt.

5. Guadarammsky tunnel, 28, 37 km long

Takes 5th place in the ranking. This is a Spanish railway project that was created in the early 2000s. Its official opening took place in December 2007.

Since that time, people have had a unique opportunity to travel from Madrid to Valladolid and back without any problems. Received the title of the longest and most sought-after device in all of Spain.

6. Iwate-Ichinohe Tunnel, the duration of which is 25.81 km.

This is an example of an underground railway structure in Japan. It connects two distant cities - Tokyo and Aomori. The opening of the structure took place in 2002. The tunnel received the title of the longest, underground railway structure in the world.

7. Hakkoda, 26.5 km long

Refers to the longest land constructions in Japan. The length of its railway section is almost 27 km.

8. Lerdal Tunnel

The length of this structure is about 24.5 km. It is rightfully called the longest automobile tunnel. Built in 5 years, opened in 2000. It connects two remote municipalities - Lerdal and Aurland, which are located on the territory of Norway.

The tunnel is part of the European highway between Oslo and Bergen. The mountains through which the structure passes can sometimes reach 1600 meters and above.

The design feature is the presence of 3 artificial caves (grottoes) of significant size. They are located at approximately the same distance from each other. Thus, the entire tunnel is divided into 4 approximately equal sections. It's made on purpose. In this way, it was possible to minimize the stress of drivers.

It has been proven that long-term movement in monotonous conditions is very tiring for the driver. Also in such grottoes it is convenient to turn around, stop for a rest.

The special design lighting of the grottoes, the special arrangement of the track make the trip through the tunnel more exciting. The duration of the movement to the structure is no more than 20 minutes.

9. Daishimizu Tunnel, 22.20 km long

Japanese tunnel created for the Niigata-Tokyo railway connection. All construction work was completed in 1978. It went down in history not only as the longest, but also the most tragic tunnel. The fact is that during its construction, a huge fire occurred in the building.

As a result, 16 workers died.
Thanks to the opening of the structure, the time spent on the road was reduced by about an hour and a half. In addition, the construction of the tunnel made it possible to find a spring of drinking water. Thanks to this, the production of natural drinking water began near the tunnel.

10. Wushaoling Tunnel, length - 21.05 km

The only double railway tunnel of its kind, which was opened in 2006. Located in northwest China. Created to communicate the two ends of Gansu Province.

The design reduced the distance between Dakaigou and Longgou by 30.5 km. Received the title of the longest railway structure in all of China. Able to receive trains at a speed of 160 km / h. The maximum depth of the structure is 1100 m.

In the ideas of mankind is the construction of the longest, grandiosely comfortable tunnel of the future. We are talking about the Japan-Korea tunnel. Its length is expected to be about 187 km. The design should connect Japan and the southern part of Korea. Negotiations on the start of construction work have already begun, but are ongoing.

10

Railway tunnel in Japan 53.85 km long with an underwater fragment 23.3 km long. The tunnel descends to a depth of about 240 meters, 100 meters below the seabed. It lies under the Sangar Strait, connecting Aomori Prefecture on the Japanese island of Honshu and the island of Hokkaido - as part of the Kaikyo line and the Hokkaido Shinkansen of the Hokkaido Railway Company. It is the deepest under the sea and the second longest railway tunnel in the world.

9

A railway tunnel in Switzerland with a length of 57.1 km (including service and pedestrian passages - 153.4 km). The north portal of the tunnel is near the village of Erstfeld, and the south portal is near the village of Bodio. After the completion of the laying of the eastern part (October 15, 2010) and the western part (March 23, 2011), it became the longest railway tunnel in the world.

8 Beijing Subway: Line 10

The high-speed rail system of Beijing, the capital of China, has been operating since 1969 and has been rapidly developing since the end of the 20th century. It ranks second among metros in the world in terms of line length and annual passenger traffic, as well as second place in terms of peak daily passenger traffic after the Moscow Metro.

7 Guangzhou Metro: Line 3

The decision to build a subway in Guangzhou was made in 1989. Construction began in 1993. The first line was put into operation on June 28, 1997. In 2002, the second line was opened, in 2005 - the third and fourth. On December 28, 2013, the 6th metro line was opened.

6

It was built in 1987 in Sweden. The cross section of the tunnel is 8 m 2 .

5

As part of a large water industry. of the Orange River project, in the middle reaches of the river, dams and reservoirs Hendrik-Verwoerd and Le Roux were built, designed to regulate the flow of the river, irrigate agricultural land, industrial water supply, and for hydropower purposes. Part of the runoff from the Hendrik-Verwoerd reservoir is transferred through a tunnel through a mountain range to the south of South Africa.

4

One of the longest tunnels is located in Liaoning province -. China has previously participated in the implementation of large-scale road projects. For example, the Danyang-Kunshan Great Bridge is the longest bridge in the world.

3

Päijanne Water Conduit- a water tunnel located in the south of Finland. Its length is 120 km, depth is from 30 to 100 m from the surface. The purpose of the construction of the conduit is to supply water to the metropolitan agglomeration of Finland, in the cities of which (Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and others) more than a million people live.

2

Many of us can afford the luxury of instant access to clean water, but few people think about the wonders of technology that allow us to pour ourselves a glass of water. New York is one of those cities that lack fresh water sources. As the population grew, aqueducts began to appear. In 1945, the Delaware Aqueduct appeared. To date, it provides the population of the metropolis with water by 50 percent. It is the second longest continuous tunnel in the world with a length of 137 kilometers. It was created by drilling and undermining hard rocks. The aqueduct works incredibly efficiently - 95 percent of the total water supply is self-supplied.

1

The longest tunnel in the world- Thirlmere aqueduct. Its length is 154,000 meters, construction began in 1890 and ended in 1925. Formally, it is not the longest tunnel in the world, as it is not a continuous tunnel, but it is generally accepted to consider it the longest tunnel in the world. The aqueduct was built to carry water from the reservoir in Manchester, about 250 thousand cubic meters of water passes through it daily.