World’s Longest Underwater Tunnel To Link Germany And Denmark; $7 Billion Project To Reduce Travel Time & Boost Travel

Fehmarnbelt Tunnel, the world’s longest underwater tunnel, is all set to redefine travel in Europe! This under-construction immersed tunnel will connect the Danish island of Lolland with the German island of Fehmarn and cross the 18-kilometre-wide Fehmarn Belt in the Baltic Sea. Scroll on to know more about this tunnel.

Fehmarnbelt Tunnel, World’s Longest Underwater Tunnel

Fehmarnbelt Tunnel is an under-construction road and rail tunnel that will provide a direct link between northern Germany and Lolland to the Danish islands of Zealand and Copenhagen. It will be the world’s longest road and rail tunnel and become a major connection between central Europe and Scandinavia.

According to a report by Indian Defence Review, this tunnel will shorten the travel time between Lolland and Fehmarn from 45 minutes by ferry (not including waiting and boarding time) to 10 minutes by car and seven minutes by train! The tunnel is slated for completion in 2029 and will revolutionise how people and goods move between Northern and Central Europe.

As per reports, the 18-kilometre Fehmarnbelt Tunnel project costs a whopping $7 billion. Femern A/S, the company tasked with designing and planning the tunnel, is a Danish state-owned company and they are constructing this link using precast segments instead of boring through rocks.

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Redefining European Travel & Pushing Engineering Boundaries

The Fehmarnbelt Tunnel is being built with massive concrete structures. These structures are assembled on land and then carefully lowered into the sea. They are then joined together to form the tunnel. Each of these precast segments weighed 73,500 tons and measured about 217 metres long.

As per reports, a total of 89 elements will be produced for the project. They are equipped with watertight bulkheads, to prevent any leakage while being submerged. Once carefully submerged, they are sealed together to create a watertight passage beneath the Baltic Sea. The Fehmarnbelt Tunnel will also surpass the Øresund Tunnel and become the longest immersed tunnel in the world, once complete. Unlike many other underwater tunnels, it will accommodate both road and rail transport.

Also Read: India’s First Undersea Rail Tunnel To Come Up As Part Of The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Corridor; Will Connect BKC To Shilpata

It’s quite amazing to see how travel is revolutionising across the world! Share your two cents about this in the comments section.

Cover Image Courtesy: X/@JournalDuGeek & YouTube/FemernAS