Mankind began to build the first structures reminiscent of today's tunnels back in the Stone Age and over the past years has achieved certain successes in this matter. We have selected the most remarkable ones that currently exist: get acquainted.
The first known underwater tunnel was built in ancient Babylon under the Euphrates more than two thousand years before the birth of Christ. Technologies have changed since then, but the essence has not: tunnels are still the most convenient way to separate traffic flows vertically and overcome various natural and man-made obstacles when moving people and goods. But not only them.
The longest in the world: Delaware Aqueduct (New York State, USA)
The honorary title of the longest operating tunnel in the world today is held by a structure not intended for the movement of people and goods. It supplies New York City with about 4.9 million cubic meters of fresh water daily from the Rondout Reservoir in the Catskill Mountains, that is, about half of what a metropolis of 20 million uses over the same period. The length of the tunnel is 137 kilometers with a diameter of 4.1 meters, and it runs at a depth of up to 300 m. It was built at a bad time for the United States and the entire Northern Hemisphere: work started in 1939 and ended only in 1944.
Pumping stations are used to pump water underground and through rivers. Those located in New York, like this one, look stylish, somewhat reminiscent of Palladian villas
Delaware Aqueduct (Delaware Aqueduct) Although it has been supplying the largest US city with water for seven decades, it is nevertheless not problematic: it leaks. As a result of leaks, at least 140 thousand cubic meters are lost into the soil. m daily, which would be enough to provide clean drinking water to about half a million people. And it would be nice if the water just went into the ground! No, it floods buildings and fields and harms nature. To solve the problem, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection is constructing a parallel tunnel to replace the worst-damaged section of the aqueduct. The cost of repairing leaks is approaching one and a half billion dollars.
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Universal tunnel SMART (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) One of the options for using tunnels is to combat flooding by draining water. In the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, they decided to build a universal two-level tunnel SMART (Stormwater Management And Road Tunnel), through which both vehicles and water can be transported during heavy rains.
Normally, the tunnel operates like a car tunnel and is used to bypass the city center (along the upper level). During heavy rains, water from the city storm drain is discharged to the lower level. And if there is a very serious threat of flooding, the tunnel is closed to car traffic and both levels are used for drainage. When the danger passes, the vehicle part can be returned to service within 48 hours. Only since the beginning of 2007, when it was opened SMART, until the summer of 2010, the tunnel saved the center of Kuala Lumpur from seven severe floods. |
Longest railway: Gotthard Base Tunnel (Switzerland)
Opening ceremony of the Gotthard Base Tunnel (Gotthard-Basistunnel) took place in Switzerland on June 1, 2016. Thus ended almost a quarter-century (the first construction work began in 1993) history of the construction of not only the longest (57 km from portal to portal), but also the deepest (up to 2450 meters of rock rises above the tunnel) railway tunnel in the world. And it cannot be said that the Gotthard Pass, which, roughly speaking, separates Italy from Germany, could not be overcome in any other way: apart from the picturesque winding path through the pass on the surface, before the opening of the GBT it was possible to use the old railway tunnel (built in 1882) or the road (1980), however, to get to them, both trains and motorists had to overcome many kilometers of dangerous mountain roads with dozens of sharp turns, which greatly complicated the task.
The northern portal of the Gotthard Base Tunnel is located near the town of Erstfeld at an altitude of 460 m above sea level. In this picture you can see that, in fact, we're talking about about two parallel electrified tunnels with a diameter of 8.83–9.58 m. By the way, the tunnel is called the base one because it is laid at the base of the mountain range whose name it bears
Now it is possible to get from Zurich to Milan in just 2 hours 50 minutes instead of the previous 3 hours 40 minutes, and on a high-speed train traveling through the tunnel at a speed of up to 250 km/h (during testing, ICE trains even accelerated to 275 km/h) . In total, there are about 65 such trains per day - they carry about 10 thousand passengers per day, and the increase in traffic was 30% in the first 8 months of operation of the tunnel. But freight traffic is still more important - up to 260 freight trains can be carried through the tunnel per day. It was precisely for the sake of transferring cargo transportation from road to rail transport that everything was started. Construction cost approximately 10 billion Swiss francs and nine human lives- that’s exactly how many of the 3,500 people who built the tunnel died during construction.
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Natural Tunnel (Virginia, USA) To lay railway tracks or a highway in the thickness of the earth, humanity does not necessarily have to chisel away at the rock for a long time and persistently - we can use what nature itself has built over millions of years.
This was done at the end of the 19th century in the American state of Virginia, by laying a railway through a natural cave made by groundwater in the thickness of limestone and dolomite. Nature created an underground structure, open at both ends, 255 meters long, up to 61 meters wide and up to 24 meters high. This is a real wonder of the world, European settlers decided in North America. This is a real tunnel - it would be a shame not to use it, their descendants-industrialists decided a couple of hundred years later, and ran freight and passenger trains through the cave. |
Longest underwater: Eurotunnel (under the English Channel between France and Great Britain)
Even if this tunnel (also known as Channel Tunnel And Le tunnel sous la Manche) would not be the current world record holder for the length of the underwater part, it should be included in our selection - for its symbolism. Opened in 1994, it embodied the almost two-century (the first plans for such a structure appeared in 1802) European dream of connecting the British Isles and the continent with a land line. They built it for a relatively short time, only six years, and paid an astronomical amount even by today’s standards - about 9 billion pounds sterling (that is, 21 billion dollars at the then exchange rate), which turned out to be more than the planned 5.5 billion pounds. In any case, the project remained for quite a long time the most expensive infrastructure project in history.
On the continent, the tunnel begins in the Calais area. This photo shows how the railway tracks after the turning circle turn to the right and go towards the sea. There's a portal to Britain
As a result, we got two parallel tunnels with a diameter of 7.6 m 30 meters from each other for trains and a 4.8-meter service tunnel between them. The length of the railway part is 50 km, 37.9 of which pass under the bottom of the English Channel at a depth of 75 meters (or 115 meters below sea level).
On both sides the tunnel is connected to the high-speed rail network, thus connecting European railways with British ones. Trains run between London on one side and Paris, Brussels and Lille on the other. If you prefer to travel around Europe by car, the tunnel will help you too: you will not depend on the weather and suffer from pitching when crossing the English Channel by ferry. Instead, you can roll your car to Eurotunnel Shuttle- a 775-meter road train that will cross the strait through a tunnel in 35 minutes. True, you won’t go far on it: only to a special terminal in Nord-Pas-de-Calais or Kent: the parameters of the train are such that it is excellent for the fast and safe transportation of cars and trucks, but the train simply won’t go further.
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Between two continents: Marmaray tunnel (Istanbul, Türkiye) In terms of symbolism and significance, the Eurotunnel has a competitor - the Marmaray tunnel (Marmaray), lying under the bottom of the Bosphorus Strait and connecting the European and Asian parts of Istanbul, that is, in a sense, two continents: a 1.4-kilometer tunnel, or rather two parallel single-track tunnels for metro trains, built as part of a project to modernize the transport system of Istanbul, runs under the bottom the Bosphorus Strait at a depth of 60 meters in an earthquake-prone area and, moreover, in muddy soil and is capable of surviving an earthquake of magnitude up to 7.0.
While the tunnel was being built, in the ground on the European shore of the strait they discovered the remains of the harbor of Theodosius, the main port of ancient Constantinople, with a mass of ancient and medieval artifacts, including the remains of Byzantine galleys discovered for the first time, and then traces of the first human settlement on the territory of modern Istanbul, which is supposed to , arose around the 7th millennium BC. |
Deepest: Eiksund Tunnel (Norway)
Speaking about tunnels laid under the seabed, one cannot fail to mention Eiksundtunnelen. In comparison with the previous ones, it is very small - 7.8 km long - and, moreover, it is intended for vehicle traffic and connects not the two largest countries in Europe, but small villages on islands in the western Norwegian province of Mere og Romsdal with the continent. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it is laid at a depth of up to 287 meters below sea level, and from the bottom of the Storfjord to the tunnel in some places there is up to 50 meters of rock.
The opening ceremony of the tunnel took place on February 23, 2008 - five years after the start of construction. The latter, by the way, was cheaper than planned - an amazing thing for infrastructure projects
The Eiksund tunnel is only part of the road complex, which also includes two smaller tunnels and a 405-meter bridge. The total population in the villages served by the complex is about 40 thousand people.
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Tunnels high in the mountains The purpose of a tunnel, as is commonly thought, is to go deep underground. However, you can also climb underground high altitude above sea level. This is done, for example, by one of the highest tunnels in the world - the Eisenhower Road Tunnel (or, officially, the Eisenhower and Edwin Johnson Memorial Tunnel, Eisenhower-Edwin C. Johnson Memorial Tunnel) 2.72 km long, cut under the American Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, USA, at an altitude of 3357–3401 m (west and east entrance respectively) to facilitate highway traffic I-70.
The Eisenhower Tunnel's competitor in the fight for the title of world record holder is the railway tunnel under Mount Jungfrau in the Swiss Alps. It, along with underground stations and an open area, was completed by 1912 after 16 years of hard work. The tunnel is 7 km long (and the entire line is 9.3 km), the maximum height above sea level is 3454 m with a height difference of 1400 m. It is intended for pleasure trips along a narrow-gauge cogwheel railway line to the picturesque Jungfraujoch pass. It is noteworthy that the record for the number of passengers per day, recorded on June 1, 2000, was 8,148 people. No wonder: the cost of a ticket for an adult starts from 113 francs (about 7,000 rubles) - compare with the free Eisenhower Tunnel, through which about 30 thousand cars pass a day. |
Longest road road: Lærdal Tunnel (Norway)
Another record-breaking tunnel was built in Norway - Lerdalsky (Lærdalstunnelen) 24.51 kilometers long, it is currently the world's longest road tunnel. It is located about five hours by car along winding roads from Eiksund, connects the communes of Aurland and Laerdal in the province of Sogn og Fjordane and is part of the highway between the country's two largest cities - Oslo and Bergen, the introduction of which saved the Norwegians from having to overcome the route between cities by ferry or along mountain roads, which are especially inhospitable in winter and in bad weather.
While the tunnel itself has conventional lighting using lamps white, dividing it into sections of the cave are highlighted in blue and yellow. This lighting is designed to imitate the dawn sky and is designed to reduce driver fatigue
Although the distance of approximately 25 km may not seem like much (only 20 minutes at the speed limit), the creators of the tunnel made sure that drivers travel through it as smoothly as possible - in particular, so that they do not fall asleep at the wheel and do not experience an attack of claustrophobia. To do this, the tunnel is divided into three large caves where you can stop or make a U-turn. It is noteworthy that in the same province they are seriously thinking about the construction of another tunnel - the Stadsky shipping tunnel, designed so that ships, including ferries, now bypassing the peninsula of the same name, could easily overcome one of the most dangerous sections of the sea off the coast of Western Norway. The construction of the tunnel, about 2 km long, 49 m high, 36 m wide and 12 m deep, is planned to begin this year or next, and will be completed in 2023. When and if the tunnel is built, Around the World will certainly talk about it - stay with us.
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The longest in Russia The longest tunnel in Russia, although much shorter in length than those described above, is no less impressive: 15 kilometers 343 meters through the granite of the North Muya Range in Buryatia took 26 years. This is not surprising: the builders had to contend with quicksand under pressure of up to 34 atmospheres, faults and other geological difficulties, as well as harsh climate, radon and background radiation and lack of funding - mining work began in 1977, and the first train passed through the tunnel only in 2001, thus, the project survived both the crisis and the collapse of the USSR, and the crisis of the early 1990s. The commissioning of the tunnel made it possible to establish non-stop movement of heavy freight trains along the BAM, which previously had to be disbanded and carried out in parts through a detour along steep avalanche-prone routes and viaducts. Travel time has been reduced on this section from two hours to 20–25 minutes. |
Photo: Jim.henderson / Wikimedia Commons, Emran Kassim / Flickr, Zacharie Grossen / Wikimedia Commons, Virginia State Parks / Wikimedia Commons, Philippe TURPIN / Getty Images, T.Müller / Wikimedia Commons, Patrick Pelster / Wikimedia Commons, Svein-Magne Tunli / Wikimedia Commons
It would be very difficult to imagine modern world without metro, underground structures and passages, tunnels - transport interchanges... All these structures make it possible to make the movement of people and vehicles as safe as possible, significantly reduce travel time, and also provide convenient access to underground communications.
Although the word "tunnel" (tunnel) came into our language from English language, its roots must be sought in France, where in the old days it meant a round, barrel-shaped vault. This is exactly what most of the underwater or underground structures through which water, people, transport, cargo and communications run, look like in cross-section to this day.
Work on the construction of tunnels is carried out in an open (excavation, trench) or closed (mining, panel, pushing) way; Also, based on construction methods, a distinction is made between sink tunnels (wells, caissons, sections) and special ones (water reduction, freezing, chemical consolidation, grouting).
The construction of modern tunnels is a very expensive, technically and technologically complex process that requires professional knowledge, skill and the availability of a project. During the construction of tunnels, a large number of units of special equipment and mechanisms are used: these are tunneling shields and combines, mine drilling rigs, loading machines, ebb and ventilation equipment, articulated dump trucks and much more. The design and construction of a tunnel is preceded by research and geological surveys, as well as a calculation of the cost of work based on them.
For modern megacities with their dense buildings, the construction of tunnels for various purposes is especially relevant in our time and is associated with a number of innovative technologies, allowing the implementation of such projects with maximum accuracy. Tunnels in the city make it possible to remove a significant part of communications from the surface; in addition, thanks to them, part of the vehicular and pedestrian traffic moves lower
surface of the earth, allowing many thousands of people to get to their destination without wasting time. Outside cities, tunnels built through a mountain range or under a river bed make it possible to shorten the route of passengers and cargo by tens and sometimes hundreds of kilometers.
Tunnels can run horizontally or at an angle, and also have other, more complex configurations. Based on their location, tunnels are usually divided into mountain tunnels - those running through watersheds, hills and mountain ranges; underwater - under river beds or sea straits; flat, which also includes urban ones.
According to their purpose, there are, as a rule, seven groups of tunnels: road, railway, for subways for municipal needs, hydraulic; for the mining industry, as well as special purposes.
Of course, it is simply unthinkable to cover even briefly all the important issues related to tunnel construction in a small magazine article. Therefore, we will dwell in more detail on the world’s longest tunnel, Saint Gotthard, and talk about the prospects of the idea of building a tunnel under the Kerch Strait, where a bridge is currently being built,
but first, here are some interesting facts about perhaps the most famous tunnel in the world, connecting France and England under the English Channel.
EUROTUNNEL UNDER THE LA MANCHE
The La Mache Tunnel, also known as the Eurotunnel, was put into operation on May 6, 1994. In total, the history of its construction lasted more than a hundred years, and its idea itself - more than two centuries. As for construction itself, in 1881 it was possible to lay 2026 meters on the English side and 1829 meters on the French side. In 1922, construction was resumed, but this time drilling stopped at 128 meters of the tunnel. The reason for the work stoppage in both cases was politics. In 1957, work began on the project, in 1973 it was finally agreed upon, but construction itself began only in mid-December 1987.
The tunnel was laid by nine tunneling shields, each 200 meters long. They were equipped with rotors with a diameter of 8 meters and tungsten carbide cutters. Six shields, moving towards each other from the French and English coasts, laid three tunnels - two main and one service. Three more shields constructed an overland tunnel from Shakespeare Cliff to the British terminal near Folkestone. Also, two shields on the mainland laid out an underground route from the coastal Sangat to the French terminal at Calais. In total, about 5 thousand engineers and technicians and over 8 thousand workers took part in the joint British-French project.
It took three and a half years to transform the finished concrete tunnels into transport routes. Before the first test electric train was launched into the tunnel, a group of young people walked from the English coast to the French coast, singing and dancing.
Today the Eurotunnel is undoubtedly the most famous structure of its kind in the world, but not the longest: the Japanese Seikan Tunnel between the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido is slightly longer - its length is 53.85 kilometers.
While the length of the Eurotunnel is 51 kilometers, 39 of which pass under the English Channel. Be that as it may, thanks to him, it became possible to travel from Paris to London by Eurostar train in a record short time - two hours and a quarter, of which the trip in the tunnel itself takes from 20 to 35 minutes. Road transport travels through the tunnel in the carriages of special Eurotunnel Shuttle trains - while drivers and passengers do not leave their cars. The maximum time for loading a car into a train carriage is eight minutes.
Technically, the Eurotunnel is not one, but three tunnels: two main ones, with a track for trains, the movement of which occurs in opposite directions, and a third, small auxiliary tunnel. It has passages every 375 meters connecting it to the main ones. An auxiliary tunnel is intended for access for maintenance personnel to the other two tunnels, as well as for emergency evacuation of people in case of emergencies. By the way, there were seven of these over more than twenty years of operation of the tunnel - as a result of each of them, the work of the tunnel was disrupted for a period of time from several hours to several months. Thanks to the design of the Eurotunnel, as well as the professional actions of the rescuers, human casualties were avoided in all cases.
The total cost of constructing the Eurotunnel and putting the structure into operation was twice as much as originally planned: about ten billion pounds sterling. The company operating the structure is Eurotunnel Groupe S.A. It has already been on the verge of bankruptcy twice. The tunnel reached a stable level of passenger traffic of more than seven million people per year only in 2003. Additional costs came from the fight against illegal migrants trying to get to the island through the Eurotunnel. Experts, either jokingly or seriously, claim that the payback period for the tunnel can exceed a thousand years.
SAINT GOTHARD: THE LONGEST "ROCK HOLE"
Without a doubt, the most striking event of this summer, and perhaps 2016 as a whole, for the global construction industry was the opening of the world's longest tunnel, built in the thickness of the Alpine mountains. True, regular traffic in the base Gotthard railway tunnel will begin only in December - technical tests are currently being carried out there. In total, construction of the NEAT Supertunnel took 17 years and cost about $11 billion. However, first things first.
The Saint Gotthard Pass, known to Russians mainly due to Suvorov’s crossing of the Alps undertaken here, historically connects the south and north of Europe, being “the path from the Italians to the Germans.” The first bridge known to history across the Schollenen Gorge in these places was built back in 1200. In 1882, the first railway tunnel, 15 kilometers long, appeared here - a record holder of its era. The seventeen-kilometer road tunnel was put into operation almost a century later, in 1980 - and for some time it was also considered the longest in the world.
Opened on June 1, 2016, the NEAT base tunnel sets an absolute world record: even two similar tunnels currently under construction, Italy - France and Italy - Austria, will be slightly shorter.
The NEAT Gotthard Tunnel was built by 2,600 workers using a tunneling shield of a record length of 410 meters (the length of four football fields).
The volume of concrete poured during the construction of the tunnel was 4 million cubic meters (four Empire State Buildings stacked on top of each other). During construction, the maximum volume of cargo transported per day was 377 thousand tons - or 15,080 standard containers. One copper cable went to the tunnel for 3,200 kilometers - this is the distance from Zurich to Baghdad. Together with two other tunnels - a road and a railway, running in parallel, which were mentioned above - the new base tunnel adds up to a total length of underground passages of 104 kilometers.
As in the Eurotunnel, train traffic in the NEAT tunnel will be carried out in opposite directions along two parallel overpasses, connected to each other every 325 meters by parallel adits for the evacuation of people in the event of an accident. Inside the tunnel there are also two technical station terminals for repairing and neutralizing trains. Security in the tunnel is monitored by sophisticated computer systems; They also plan the schedule for optimal train movement under the mountain range. Which, of course, does not in any way detract from the colossal work of engineers, builders and tunnel diggers, nine of whom cost their lives to participate in this “construction of the century.”
Thanks to the new Gotthard tunnel, it will be possible to get from Milan to Berlin by train in one hour and fifty-eight minutes - and only 20 minutes of this time will be spent passing through the tunnel itself. Currently, work is underway to integrate NEAT into the overall railway system between the north and south of Europe, essentially connecting its Mediterranean coast with the Baltic.
But what will happen to the old railway tunnel after December 2016, when trains start running on NEAT? It will operate until at least 2025, after which it plans to assess changes in freight and passenger flows and decide whether further investment in it is worthwhile. The option of applying for the status of a UNESCO heritage site for the old tunnel is also being considered. If this issue is resolved positively, there will be an opportunity for the widespread development of international tourism here, including trips underground on historical trains from different times.
TO DIGGING OR NOT TO DIGGING UNDER THE KERCH STRAIT?
Even before the approval of the project for a bridge across the Kerch Strait between Kuban and Crimea, the possibility of constructing a tunnel under the strait was considered as an alternative solution. And even today, when the construction of the Kerch Bridge is in full swing, the idea of a tunnel under the strait still remains relevant, discussed both at the regional level (Crimea), and in industry publications and on the resources of professional communities on the Internet (“Underground Expert” and a number of others ).
Two years ago, the Chinese proposed building a tunnel under the strait - according to their plan, it should be a structure laid directly on the bottom, without damaging it, and include two railways, a six-lane highway and an infrastructure canal for backup electricity and gas supplies. The project implementation period, according to the authors, is very short: only two and a half years. A similar project (albeit a kilometer shorter) by its authors, a state construction corporation from the People's Republic of China, has already been implemented in their homeland, Macau. Weak side of the project is the fact that the structure within which the tunnel will be located will have to be laid on a layer of unstable Quaternary deposits, which can behave unpredictably under its weight.
Another project has similar shortcomings, which involves the construction of a tunnel under the Kerch Strait using an open method in Quaternary sediments (alluvial channel sands, floodplain soft-plastic and other clays, fluid-plastic loams with lenses of loamy and sandy loam silts, etc.). In addition, the construction of a tunnel using the open method, although cheaper and faster, has a negative impact on the environmental situation and complications for navigation associated with the stage-by-stage transfer of the fairway.
The optimal option for constructing a tunnel under the Kerch Strait, according to Russian experts (Andrei Solovyov and Nikolai Kulagin (“Lengmetrogiprotrans”), as well as a number of others), would be a closed method - namely, the excavation of two single-track tunnels using tunnel boring mechanized complexes (TMPC), carried out with Crimean and Kuban coasts in hard, stable Sarmatian clays, at a depth of 60-80 meters from sea level. At the same time, a double-track railway line is being built to ensure the transportation of goods and vehicles on railway platforms in specialized wagons.
The speed of trains in the tunnel is 160 kilometers per hour; capacity - 9.5 thousand transport units per day. The length of each of the two parallel tunnels is almost 23 kilometers;
They are connected to each other every 300 meters by evacuation connections. (A similar solution, without a service tunnel, was implemented in the design of the 28-kilometer Guadaramma tunnel in Spain.) With a frequency of four trains per hour in each direction in the tunnel, one train travels simultaneously in one direction, the second tunnel all the time it travels to a station in the other the coast remains clear. After the train exits the tunnel, another train begins moving in the opposite direction.
In both tunnels, according to the project, a reinforced concrete waterproof lining is being constructed from reinforced concrete blocks with an outer diameter of 10.3 meters and an inner diameter of 9.4 meters. It is designed for seismic impact up to 9 points. The gap between the lining and the rock is filled under pressure with a special solution, preventing the soil from decompacting. In addition to the railway tracks, each of the tunnels also contains drainage trays, plumbing and electrical equipment, communications, signaling devices, communications and ventilation, made in a longitudinal pattern.
To organize the transshipment of vehicles onto railway platforms, the project provides for the construction of transshipment stations, control rooms and crossing operation points on both sides of the strait. This project is designed for implementation period of 4 years and two months; the cost estimate for it is 230 billion rubles. Of all those submitted for consideration, it seems the most rational - but also has a narrow side. Namely: digging a tunnel with four TBMs requires large, about 25 MW, powers - and while the Kuban side has them, the Crimean side does not. Consequently, it will be necessary to first construct a cable passage across the strait 14.5 kilometers long, which will take about a year. However, in any case, such a tunnel, the most environmentally friendly and safe in operation, could successfully complement the Kerch Bridge, the transport load on which, as can be easily calculated from ferry statistics, is expected to be very serious.
It is no coincidence that we delved into the technical aspects of two already built tunnels and one designed. While modern buildings are built to last for decades, tunnel passages, whether underground or underwater, are built to last for centuries. At the same time, in a very long term, everything is taken into account: efficiency, environmental friendliness, consistency with other communications, safety in relation to the elements, man-made incidents and terrorist attacks, and much more. The construction of any large tunnel today automatically becomes a national, or even an international project. And it may very well be that centuries later, descendants will largely formulate ideas about the level of human civilization in our time by studying these very structures under water or underground. The margin of safety inherent in them makes such a prospect more than realistic.
Underwater tunnel
(a. underwater tunnel; n. Unterwasserstollen, Unterwassertunnel; f. tunnel sous-marin; And. tunel submarine) - designed to overcome water obstacles in order to pass traffic. means and pedestrians, laying engineer. communications, etc. Unlike bridges, they do not disrupt the watercourse regime, do not interfere with navigation, and protect transport. means or communications from unfavorable atmospheres. impacts, and when located in a city in a minimum. degrees disrupt the architectural ensemble. The advantages of P. t. compared to bridges mean. degrees increase with flat banks of the watercourse and with intense navigation.
Depending on their location relative to the bottom of a watercourse (reservoir), there are tunnels buried in the ground (Fig., a), tunnels on dams (Fig., b), or separate ones. supports (tunnel-bridges) (Fig., c) and “floating” tunnels (Fig., d).
tunnel; 2 - ramp; 3 - ; 4 - supports; 5 - cable stays. ">
Types of underwater tunnels: a - buried in the bottom; b - on the dam; c - on supports (tunnel-bridge); g - "floating"; 1 - tunnel; 2 - ramp; 3 - dam; 4 - supports; 5 - cable stays.
Tunnels on dams, tunnel-bridges and “floating” tunnels are effective when crossing deep water barriers, because At the same time, the length of the tunnel passage is reduced and operation is improved. track indicators.
The world's first P. t. (length 900 m, width 4.9 m and height 3.9 m) was built in Babylon under p. Euphrates 2180 BC e. A large number of P. t. dec. are in use around the world. destinations, among which transport predominates. tunnels: railway, road, subway (table). 
B CCCP P. t. built under pp. Moscow, Nevaya, Kura on the lines of the Moscow, Leningradsky and Tailissky metro, road tunnels - under the canal. Moscow in Moscow, under the Sea Canal in Leningrad, etc. It is planned to build the largest P. T. under the Strait. English Channel (52 km), Strait of Gibraltar. (32 km), Gulf of Bothnia (22 km), Strait. Bosphorus (12 km), Strait of Messina. etc.
P. t. are located on a straight or curved route in plan, which is associated with the need to bypass zones of strong erosion, islands, artificial underwater structures, etc. The depth of laying the P. t. relative to the line of possible erosion is taken to be at least 4-5 m in dense clayey soils. soils and at least 8-10 m in non-cohesive soils. With the lowering section method, min. the depth of placement in dense clay soils is 1.5-2 m, and in non-cohesive soils 2.5-3 m. The radii of curves in plan and profile, longitudinal slopes and dimensions of the tunnel are taken depending on the purpose of the tunnel and its location along relevant standards. The width of the P. t. reaches 40 m or more, the height is 10 m (for example, in Antwerp).
The method of constructing a P. t. is determined by its length, cross-sectional dimensions, topography, geological engineering. and hydrological conditions. Pts are most often constructed using the panel method or the method of lowering sections. B dept. In cases, mining or open-pit methods are used, and in complex geological engineering. conditions - tunneling under compressed air, lowering caissons, plugging, artificial freezing or chemical. . Pt structures constructed using the panel method are made in the form of circular tunnel linings made of cast iron or steel tubing or reinforced concrete elements with internal. waterproofing. At the horn In the method of work, vaulted linings are made of monolithic concrete or reinforced concrete. The lowering sections of P. t. can be circular, binocular or rectangular cross-section made of reinforced concrete with external waterproofing. P. t. are equipped with systems of artificial ventilation, lighting, drainage, as well as special. devices that ensure safe operation of the structure. Literature: Makovsky V.L., Underwater tunneling, M., 1983. L. B. Makovsky.
Mountain encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Edited by E. A. Kozlovsky. 1984-1991 .
See what “Underwater tunnel” is in other dictionaries:
It is constructed under a river bed or under another water barrier, serving to pass transport and accommodate utility lines. The width of the underwater tunnel reaches 40 m or more, the height is 10 m (for example, the underwater tunnel under the English Channel in Antwerp) ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
If there are highways or railways, large rivers, sea bays and straits on the route, the problem arises of what to build: a bridge or a tunnel? In large port cities where ocean liners call, the bridge would have to be raised... ... Encyclopedia of technology
It is constructed under a river bed or under another water barrier, serving to pass transport and accommodate utility lines. The width of the underwater tunnel reaches 40 m or more, the height is 10 m (for example, the underwater tunnel under the English Channel, in... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary
underwater tunnel- 3.25 underwater tunnel: A capital underground structure for ensuring traffic movement and (or) laying utilities under water. Source: SP 122.13330.2012: Railway and road tunnels 3.16 underwater tunnel:… … Dictionary-reference book of terms of normative and technical documentation
A tunnel constructed under the bed of a watercourse (or under another water barrier, such as a sea strait), for the passage of vehicles and the placement of utilities. P. t. usually cross the under-channel and partially coastal zones and... ...
Tunnel Route Project Japan-South Korea Undersea Tunnel is a proposed tunnel project between two Asian countries Japan and South Korea. Length along the shortest route (via the islands of Iki and Tsushima) 182 km. ... ... Wikipedia
- (a. tunnel; n. Tunnel; f. tunnel, galerie, souterrain; i. tunel) an extended underground (underwater) structure for transport. purposes, gaskets engineer. communications, etc. According to their purpose, T. are divided into transport ones (see Transport tunnel), ... ... Geological encyclopedia
Underwater tunnel- Underwater tunnel: a tunnel structure used to pass vehicular traffic under a water obstacle... Source: ODM 218.2.012 2011. Industry road methodological document. Classification of structural elements of artificial... ... Official terminology
Tunnel (English tunnel), a horizontal or inclined underground structure (See Underground structures), serving for transport purposes, moving water, laying underground communications, etc. T. are distinguished by purpose... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Entrance to the tunnel (April 1985) The Holland Tunnel is one of the first underwater automobile tunnels ... Wikipedia
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Tunnels have always been considered irreplaceable structures necessary for safe passage or passage underground. But if earlier such architectural masterpieces helped people quietly penetrate enemy territory, today their construction is connected with other goals. Moreover, they differ from each other in structure, location and length. We decided to tell you today what the longest tunnels in the world are.
The longest Japanese tunnel
The longest railway tunnel to date is located in the Land of the Rising Sun. It is called Seikan, which means “Majestic Spectacle” in Japanese. The tunnel is quite impressive in size and even has a part hidden under water. Thus, its total length is 53.85 km, and the underwater fragment corresponds to a length of 23.3 km. That is why, in addition to the title of one of the largest land structures, Seikan also has another title - the longest underwater tunnel in the world.
The structure itself, which took at least 40 years to build, was erected in 1988. It contains two stations. However, despite the power of the building, Seikan is currently not used as often as before. According to analysts, this is due to an increase in railway fares.
Seikan is a tunnel whose depth is 240 m. This marvelous creation of man is located under the famous. According to the designers, the tunnel unites Hokkaido.
Few people know that the original impetus that led to the creation of this giant was a typhoon, as a result of which 5 passenger ferries were wrecked. As a result of this disaster, more than 1,150 tourists, including crew members, died on board just one of them.
The longest and most land connection in the world
The longest tunnels in the world can be divided into the following types:
- aboveground;
- underground;
- automobile, or road;
- railway;
- underwater.
Lamberg, once built in Switzerland, is considered one of the longest above-ground tunnels. Its length is 34 km. Trains can easily travel along it, sometimes reaching speeds of 200 km/h. It is noteworthy that this structure helps Swiss travelers arrive in one of the most popular resort areas of the country - Valle - in a couple of hours. According to experienced tourists, this is where numerous thermal springs are located.
It is interesting that, in addition to its main task, Lamberg, like the other longest tunnels in the world, also performs a number of others. In particular, near the building itself there are warm ones that help to heat Tropenhaus Frutigen - a nearby greenhouse and tropical crops growing on its territory.
One of the largest automobile subways
The longest road tunnel in the world is Lerdal. This 24.5 km long structure is a kind of connecting bridge between the municipalities of Airland and Laerdal, located in western Norway. Moreover, the Lärdal tunnel is considered a continuation of the famous E16 highway, which is located between Bergen and Oslo.
Construction of the famous tunnel began in mid-1995, and it ended closer to 2000. From that moment on, the structure was recognized as one of the longest automobile subways, leaving behind the famous Gotthard Tunnel by as much as 8 km.
Interestingly, the construction passes through mountains whose height is above 1600 m. Thanks to the precise calculations of the architects, experts managed to reduce the load on drivers moving through the tunnel. And this was achieved by creating three additional grottoes, equidistant from each other. At the same time, these artificial caves divide the free space under the building into four long sections. This is such an unusual and longest tunnel in the world.
Third longest railway tunnel
The Eurotunnel is considered the third longest among other subways passing through railway tracks. This structure runs under the English Channel and unites Great Britain with part of continental Europe. With its help, anyone can travel from Paris to London in just a couple of hours. The train remains inside the underground pipe for an average of 20-35 minutes.
The grand opening of the Eurotunnel took place in May 1994. Despite the fact that a lot of money was spent on the construction of this underground corridor, the world community recognized it as a miraculous masterpiece. Therefore, the structure was classified as one of the modern wonders of the world. According to preliminary estimates, this longest tunnel in the world will become self-sustaining only after 1000 years.
Longest tunnel in the Alps
Another incredible underground corridor that has not lost its position for over half a century is the Simplon Tunnel. It is he who is considered the most successful link between the city of Domodossola (Italy) and Brig (Switzerland). In addition, the building itself has a convenient geographical location, as it crosses the famous Orient Express route and touches one of the lines in the Paris-Istanbul direction.
Incredibly, the Simplon Tunnel has its own history. These walls remember a lot, for example, the fact that during the Second World War the entrance and exit from it were mined. However, an unauthorized explosion was avoided thanks to the help of local partisans. Currently, the subway consists of two portals 19803 and 19823 m long. Now you know where the longest tunnel in the world is.
Unfinished “monster” in the Alps
In the Alps there is also an unfinished one which is called a real monster of modern architectural buildings. This titanium, whose length is about 57 km, is comfortably located in friendly Switzerland. According to the project developers themselves, the main goal of the tunnel is the safe passage of goods and passengers through the Alps. In addition, it can be used to reduce the time of a three-hour journey from Zurich to Milan to two hours and fifty minutes.
And although the Gotthard Tunnel is not yet finished, it is already breaking records for the amount of money spent. As reported in one foreign publication, to date the construction of the underground corridor has cost its owners $10.3 billion. The opening of one of the longest railway tunnels is planned for 2017.
The longest tunnels in the world: undersea connection between Japan and South Korea
The South Korean government, together with the Japanese, has developed a plan to build a tunnel 182 km long. This decision was made in order to increase trade turnover and speed up transport connections between the two countries. This project, according to experts, will be grandiose. And although its construction is just beginning, developers, engineers and architects have already had to face a lot of problems. In particular, it is not yet clear how the rescue system will work if a random accident suddenly occurs.
The longest and most expensive tunnel in the world
The longest road tunnel, where you can see eight lanes of the highway at once, is considered the Great Boston Tunnel. However, its amazing structure and design undoubtedly pale in comparison to the amount that the customers of this building had to pay.
According to preliminary data, the total budget spent on the construction of the tunnel exceeded $14.6 billion. But the contractors were unable to meet this amount, so additional daily costs amounted to about $3 million. More than 150 modern cranes worked during the construction of the Great Boston Tunnel. Moreover, more than 5,000 employees participated in the process itself.
The longest tunnel in all of Spain
Spain also boasts Guadarama, a long land tunnel that connects Valladolid with Madrid. Its length is only 28.37 km. The opening of this building took place in 2007. Later they started talking about Guadarama as the largest architectural work in Spain.
Large underground tunnel in Japan
Japan is famous for its underground and above-ground buildings, including the large Hakkoda railway tunnel. Its total length is about 26.5 km. Many years have passed since the opening of this building until now. But it continues to be one of the most unique spacious passages, along which two trains can pass at once.
With the increase in the depth and width of water barriers, the cost of constructing underwater tunnels increases sharply and problems arise associated with the lowering and underwater joining of tunnel sections. In this regard, a number of countries are working on various conceptual and technological solutions for the construction of “floating” tunnels.
Located entirely in the water, shallow from the surface (depending on navigation conditions up to 30-35 m), such tunnels are held by a system of vertical or inclined cables, fixed to the bottom of the water barrier, or fixed to pontoons (see Fig. 1.1, d, e) .
At the same time, the length of the tunnel passage is significantly reduced, there is no need to open underwater pits and backfill sections, the connection of the underwater part with the coastal sections is simplified and the cost of construction is reduced. Such tunnels can be built up to 30 km long at water depths of up to 500 m or more.
In addition to the usual permanent and temporary loads, the structures of “floating” tunnels are subject to loads caused by fluctuations in water temperature, currents, ebbs and flows, changes in water density, compression waves from passing ships, the likelihood of a collision between ships above the tunnel, loss of buoyancy, damage to the fastening system, etc. .
Norway has developed a program for the construction of “floating” tunnels through deep fiords (water depth up to 600 m). Individual reinforced concrete sections ranging from 300 to 500 m in length are kept afloat by guy ropes attached to the tunnel structure and in anchor arrays at the bottom of the fiord.
An example is the project for the construction of a “floating” tunnel near the city of Stavanger at a depth of 25 m from the surface of the water in a fjord 155 m deep (Fig. 5.22 and 5.23).
Rice. 5.22.
From various options“floating” tunnels - supported on coastal abutments (with a short length), on intermediate supports, anchored into the bottom of the strait (Fig. 5.24, a) or suspended from pontoons (Fig. 5.24, b) - was chosen developed by the company Kvaerner steel structure of lowering sections, secured by cables to cylindrical pontoons. It can be assembled away from the tunnel route and then delivered to it afloat.
It is planned to build a tunnel through Hogsfjord on the southwestern coast of the country. The width of the fiord at the intersection is 1400, depth - 150 m. The construction of a bridge or a tunnel buried in the bottom in this place is fraught with significant difficulties. Tunnel sections of circular cross-section made of prestressed reinforced concrete with a diameter of 9.5 m will be immersed to a depth of 15-20 m below the water level and anchored with cable guys to the bottom (Fig. 5.25).
Rice. 5.23. Options for the cross section and fastening of the “floating” tunnel near Stavanger in Norway: 1 - tunnel; 2 - water level in the bay; 3 - bottom of the bay; 4 - cable stays
Based on six years of comprehensive design and research work, the construction of a “floating” tunnel under Eidfjord has also been proposed. The width of the fjord is 1270 m, the depth of the water is 400-500 m. The tunnel of prestressed reinforced concrete sections with a diameter of 9.5 m is designed at a depth of 15 m from the water surface and is secured with cables to the bottom, and horizontal braces to the shore anchor devices. A variant has been developed for fastening the tunnel with floating paired pontoons anchored to the bottom. Each pontoon is attached to 24 gravity anchors by means of double 44mm diameter steel cables passed through looped outlets at the top of the anchors.
A three-section “floating” tunnel is designed for the Eiden fjord with a width of 1240 m and a depth of 450 m.
The largest “floating” tunnel (model of the “Archimedes Bridge”) for passing combined road and rail traffic between the mainland and the island of Sicily was designed in Italy through the Strait of Messina. Several tunnel options have been proposed, differing in dimensions, anchoring method, etc.
Rice. 5.24. Options (a, b) of floating tunnels: 1 - tunnel; 2 - anchor guys; 3 - pontoons
According to one of the options, a tunnel with a total length of 3.25 km includes lowering sections made of prestressed reinforced concrete, made in the form of three conjugate circular tunnels with an outer diameter of 12.3 m. The side tunnels are intended for two-lane road traffic, and the central one for double-track railway traffic (Fig. 5.26 ).
With a strait depth of 100-130 m, the “floating” tunnel is planned to be located at a depth of 40 m from the water surface in order to allow unhindered passage of ships. The position of the tunnel sections, which have positive buoyancy, is strictly fixed by a system of paired cables anchored in reinforced concrete masses laid along the bottom of the strait.
It is planned to install three sections of prestressed reinforced concrete on the 2.05 km long underwater section. The sections are equipped with fairings on the sides to reduce the force impact of the water flow. The guy rope system is designed for a tunnel lifting force of 96 thousand kN (300 kN per 1 m of tunnel length) and for horizontal sea current pressures.
Rice. 5.25. Schemes (a, b) of “floating” underwater tunnels under Hogsfjord in Norway (project): 1 - sections of the tunnel; 2 - pontoon; 3 - anchor plate; 4 - cable stays
The main cables are attached to the tunnel structure every 10 m and anchored into reinforced concrete masses at an angle of 60° to the horizontal. Another group of cables for perception of horizontal pressure is attached to the tunnel at an angle of 45°. The tension force of each cable is 1260 kN, the weight of the anchor concrete mass is about 300 tons.
The design of the “floating” tunnel includes emergency compartments that prevent the tunnel from rising by filling them with water (the valves are automatically activated) in the event of a break in one of the cables.
Rice. 5.26. Cross-section of the “floating” tunnel under the Strait of Messina (project): 1 - compartment for cars; 2 - ballast weight; 3 - compartment for railway trains; 4 - cable stays; 5 - anchors; 6 - fairings; 7 - water level; 8 - bottom of the strait
According to another version of the project, three separate tunnels are provided: one for double-track railway traffic with a length of 5.4 km and two for two-lane road traffic with a length of 6 and a diameter of 15.5 km. The tunnels will be secured at a depth of 47.75 m from the water surface using guy ropes.
In Japan, projects have been developed for the construction of “floating” tunnels between the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido, under Uchiura Bay, as well as between Kasan and Kobe airports through the bay in Osaka. Of greatest interest is the project of a two-tier underwater tunnel between the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido through Fuka Bay. The upper tier is intended for two-lane road traffic, and the lower tier is for double-track railway traffic. In an underwater area at depth
The “floating” tunnel is held 20 m from the water surface by guy ropes. To counteract vibrations of the tunnel structure during the movement of trains and cars, as well as from sea waves, fin-type stabilizers are additionally provided.
In Switzerland, three options have been developed for the construction of a transport crossing of the lake from north to south: a bridge, a tunnel constructed using a closed method, and a “floating” tunnel. The latter turned out to be preferable. Ten tunnel sections, consisting of two coaxially located steel pipes with a length of 100, an outer diameter of 12 and an inner diameter of 11 m with concrete filling between them, will be held at a depth of 14 m from the water surface by a system of cables located every 50 m at an angle of 45° to the horizon.
There are also project proposals for the construction of “floating” tunnels across the Strait of Gibraltar and the English Channel, under the Great Lakes in the USA and Canada.