Underpass

Owing to the enclosed space of a tunnel, fires can have very serious effects on users. The main dangers are gas and smoke production, with low concentrations of carbon monoxide being highly toxic. Fires killed 11 people in the Gotthard tunnel fire of 2001 for example, all of the victims succumbing to smoke and gas inhalation. Over 400 passengers died in the Balvano train disaster in Italy in 1944, when the locomotive halted in a long tunnel. Carbon monoxide poisoning was the main cause of the horrifying death rate. Examples of tunnels, In history: The World's oldest underwater tunnel is rumored to be the Terelek kaya tüneli under Kızıl River, a little south of the towns of Boyabat and Duragan in Turkey. Estimated to have been built more than 2000 years ago (possibly 5000), it is assumed to have had a defence purpose., The qanat or kareez of Persia is a water management system used to provide a reliable supply of water to human settlements or for irrigation in hot, arid and semi-arid climates. The oldest and largest known qanat is in the Iranian city of Gonabad, which after 2700 years, still provides drinking and agricultural water to nearly 40,000 people. Its main well depth is more than 360 m (1,180 ft), and its length is 45 km (28 mi)., The Eupalinian aqueduct on the island of Samos (North Aegean, Greece). Built in 520 BC by the ancient Greek engineer Eupalinos of Megara. Eupalinos organised the work so that the tunnel was begun from both sides of mount Kastro. The two teams advanced simultaneously and met in the middle with excellent accuracy, something that was extremely difficult in that time. The aqueduct was of utmost defensive importance, since it ran underground, and it was not easily found by an enemy who could otherwise cut off the water supply to Pythagoreion, the ancient capital of Samos. The tunnel's existence was recorded by Herodotus (as was the mole and harbour, and the third wonder of the island, the great temple to Hera, thought by many to be the largest in the Greek world). The precise location of the tunnel was only re-established in the 19th century by German archaeologists. The tunnel proper is 1,030 m long (3,380 ft) and visitors can still enter it Eupalinos tunnel., The Via Flaminia, an important Roman road, penetrated the Furlo pass in the Apennines through a tunnel which emperor Vespasian had ordered built in 76-77. A modern road, the SS 3 Flaminia, still uses this tunnel, which had a precursor dating back to the 3rd century BC; remnants of this earlier tunnel (one of the first road tunnels) are also still visible., Sapperton Canal Tunnel on the Thames and Severn Canal in England, dug through hills, which opened in 1789, was 3.5 km (2.2 mi) long and allowed boat transport of coal and other goods. Above it runs the Sapperton Long Tunnel which carries the "Golden Valley" railway line between Swindon and Gloucester., The 1796 Stoddart Tunnel in Chapel-en-le-Frith in Derbyshire is reputed to be the oldest rail tunnel in the world. Rail wagons were horse-drawn., The tunnel was created for the first true steam locomotive, from Penydarren to Abercynon. The Penydarren locomotive was built by Richard Trevithick. The locomotive made the historic journey from Penydarren to Abercynon in 1804. Part of this tunnel can still be seen at Pentrebach, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. This is arguably the oldest railway tunnel in the world, for self-propelled steam engines on rails., The Montgomery Bell Tunnel in Tennessee, a 88 m (289 ft), high water diversion tunnel, 4.50-×-2.45 m high (15-×-8.0 ft), to power a water wheel, was built by slave labour in 1819, being the first full-scale tunnel in North America., Crown Street Station, Liverpool, 1829. Built by George Stephenson, a single track tunnel 291 yd long (266 m) was bored from Edge Hill to Crown Street to serve the world's first passenger railway station. The station was abandoned in 1836 being too far from Liverpool city centre, with the area converted for freight use. Closed down in 1972, the tunnel is disused. However it is the oldest rail tunnel running under streets in the world. 1, The 1.26 mile (2.03 km) 1829 Wapping Tunnel in Liverpool, England, was the first rail tunnel bored under a metropolis. Currently disused since 1972. Having two tracks, the tunnel runs from Edge Hill in the east of the city to the south end Liverpool docks being used only for freight. The tunnel is still in excellent condition and is being considered for reuse by Merseyrail rapid transit rail system, with maybe an underground station cut into the tunnel. The river portal is opposite the new Liverpool Arena being ideal for a serving station. If reused it will be the oldest used underground rail tunnel in the world and oldest part of any underground metro system., 1836, Lime St Station tunnel, Liverpool. A two track rail tunnel, 1.13 miles (1,811 m) long was bored under a metropolis from Edge Hill in the east of the city to Lime Street. In the 1880s the tunnel was converted to a deep cutting four tracks wide. The only occurrence of a tunnel being removed. A very short section of the original tunnel still exists at Edge Hill station making this the oldest rail tunnel in the world still in use, and the oldest in use under a street, albeit only one street and one building., Box Tunnel in England, which opened in 1841, was the longest railway tunnel in the world at the time of construction. It was dug and has a length of 2.9 km (1.8 mi)., The 0.75 mile long 1842 Prince of Wales Tunnel, in Shildon near Darlington, England, is the oldest sizable tunnel in the world still in use under a settlement., The Thames Tunnel, built by Marc Isambard Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1843, was the first underwater tunnel and the first to use a tunnelling shield. Originally used as a foot-tunnel, it was a part of the East London Line of the London Underground until 2007, being the oldest section of the system. From 2010 the tunnel becomes a part of the London Overground system., The 2.07 miles (3.34 km) Victoria Tunnel in Liverpool, opened in 1848, was bored under a metropolis. Initially used only for rail freight and later freight and passengers serving the Liverpool ship liner terminal, the tunnel runs from Edge Hill in the east of the city to the north end Liverpool docks. Used until 1972 it is still in excellent condition, being considered for reuse by the Merseyrail rapid transit rail system. Stations being cut into the tunnel are being considered. Also, reuse by a monorail system from the proposed Liverpool Waters redevelopment of Liverpool's Central Docks has been proposed., The oldest underground sections of the London Underground were built using the cut-and-cover method in the 1860s. The Metropolitan, Hammersmith & City, Circle and District lines were the first to prove the success of a metro or subway system. Dating from 1863, Baker Street station is the oldest underground station in the world., The 1882 Col de Tende Road Tunnel, at 3182 metres long, was one of the first long road tunnels under a pass, running between France and Italy., The Mersey Railway tunnel opened in 1886 running from Liverpool to Birkenhead under the River Mersey. The Mersey Railway was the world's first deep-level underground railway. By 1892 the extensions on land from Birkenhead Park station to Liverpool Central Low level station gave a tunnel 3.12 miles (5029 m) in length. The under river section is 0.75 miles in length, being the longest underwater tunnel in world in January 1886., The rail Severn Tunnel was opened in late 1886, at 4 miles 624 yd (7,008 m) long, although only 2¼ miles (3.62 km) of the tunnel is actually under the river. The tunnel replaced the Mersey Railway tunnel's longest under water record, which it held for less than a year., James Greathead, in constructing the City & South London Railway tunnel beneath the Thames, opened in 1890, brought together three key elements of tunnel construction under water: 1) shield method of excavation; 2) permanent cast iron tunnel lining; 3) construction in a compressed air environment to inhibit water flowing through soft ground material into the tunnel heading., St. Clair Tunnel, also opened later in 1890, linked the elements of the Greathead tunnels on a larger scale., The 1927 Holland Tunnel was the first underwater tunnel designed for automobiles. This fact required a novel ventilation system., See also the rapid transit history. Longest: The Delaware Aqueduct in New York USA is the longest tunnel, of any type, in the world at 137 km (85 mi). It is drilled through solid rock., The Gotthard Base Tunnel is the longest rail tunnel in the world at 57 km (35 mi). It will be totally completed in 2017., The Seikan Tunnel in Japan was the longest rail tunnel in the world at 53.9 km (33.5 mi), of which 23.3 km (14.5 mi) is under the sea., The Channel Tunnel between France and the United Kingdom under the English Channel is the second-longest, with a total length of 50 km (31 mi), of which 39 km (24 mi) is under the sea., The Lötschberg Base Tunnel opened in June 2007 in Switzerland was the longest land rail tunnel, with a total of 34.5 km (21.4 mi)., The Lærdal Tunnel in Norway from Lærdal to Aurland is the world's longest road tunnel, intended for cars and similar vehicles, at 24.5 km (15.2 mi)., The Zhongnanshan Tunnel in People's Republic of China opened in January 2007 is the world's second longest highway tunnel and the longest road tunnel in Asia, at 18 km (11 mi)., The longest canal tunnel is the Rove Tunnel in France, over 7.12 km (4.42 mi) long., Notable: The Lincoln Tunnel between New Jersey and New York is one of the busiest vehicular tunnels in the United States, at 120,000 vehicles/day., The Central Artery Tunnel in Boston carries approximately 200,000 vehicles/day., The Fredhälls Tunnel in Stockholm, Sweden, and the New Elbe Tunnel in Hamburg, Germany, both with around 150,000 vehicles a day, two of the most trafficked tunnels in the world., Gerrards Cross tunnel in Britain is notable in that it is being built over a railway cutting that was dug in the early part of the 20th Century. Thus, arguably, making it the tunnel longest in construction by the cut and cover method. When complete a branch of the Tesco supermarket chain will occupy the space above the railway tunnel., Williamson's tunnels in Liverpool, built by a wealthy eccentric are probably the largest underground folly in the world., New York City Water Tunnel No. 32, started in 1970, has an expected completion date of 2020., The Chicago Deep Tunnel Project is a network of 175 km (109 mi) of tunnels designed to reduce flooding in the Chicago area. Started in the mid 1970s, the project is due to be completed in 2019., Moffat Tunnel in Colorado straddles the Continental Divide. The tunnel is 6.2 mi (10.0 km) long and at 9,239 ft (2,816 m) above sea level is the highest railroad tunnel in the United States., The Fenghuoshan tunnel on Qinghai-Tibet railway is the world's highest railway tunnel, about 4,905 m (16,093 ft) above sea level., The La Linea Tunnel in Colombia, will be (2013) the longest, 8.58 km (5.33 mi), mountain tunnel in South America. It crosses beneath a mountain at 2,500 m (8,202.1 ft) above sea level with six lanes and it has a parallel emergency tunnel. The tunnel is subject to serious groundwater pressure. The tunnel, which is currently under construction, will link Bogotá and its urban area with the coffee-growing region and with the main port on the Colombian Pacific coast., The Honningsvåg Tunnel (4.443 km (2.76 mi) long) on European route E69 in Norway is the world's northernmost road tunnel, except for mines (which exist on Svalbard)., The Eiksund Tunnel 3 on national road Rv 653 in Norway is the world's deepest subsea road tunnel (7,776 m long, with deepest point at -287 metres below the sea level, opened in feb. 2008), Other uses: Excavation techniques, as well as the construction of underground bunkers and other habitable areas, are often associated with military use during armed conflict, or civilian responses to threat of attack. The use of tunnels for mining is called drift mining. One of the strangest uses of a tunnel was for the storage of chemical weapons4. Natural tunnels, Lava tubes are partially empty, cave-like conduits underground, formed during volcanic eruptions by flowing and cooling lava., Natural Tunnel State Park (Virginia, USA) features an 850-foot (259 m) natural tunnel, really a limestone cave, that has been used as a railroad tunnel since 1890., Punarjani Guha Kerala, India. Hindus believe that crawling through the tunnel (which they believe was created by a Hindu god) from one end to the other will wash away all of one's sins and thus attain rebirth, although only men are permitted to crawl through the cave., Small "snow tunnels" are created by voles, chipmunks and other rodents for protection and access to food sources. For more information regarding tunnels built by animals, see Burrow, Temporary way, During construction of a tunnel it is often convenient to install a temporary railway particularly to remove spoil. This temporary railway is often narrow gauge so that it can be double track, which facilitates the operation of empty and loaded trains at the same time. The temporary way is replaced by the permanent way at completion, thus explaining the term Perway. Enlargement, The vehicles using a tunnel can outgrow it, requiring replacement or enlargement. The original single line Gib Tunnel near Mittagong was replaced with a double line tunnel, with the original tunnel used for growing mushrooms. The Rhyndaston Tunnel was enlarged using a borrowed Tunnel Boring Machine so as to be able to take ISO containers. The 1836 Lime Street two track 1 mile tunnel from Edge Hill to Lime Street in Liverpool was totally removed, apart from a short 50 metre section at Edge Hill. Four tracks were required. The tunnel was converted into a very deep 4 track open cutting. However, short larger 4 track tunnels were left in some parts of the run. Train services were not interrupted as the work progressed. Photos of the work in progress: 5 6 There are other occurrences of tunnels being replaced by open cuts, for example, the Auburn Tunnel. Accidents, Balvano train disaster, Gotthard Road Tunnel, 1996 Channel Tunnel fire, Bujanov Tunnel, Harmanec Tunnel

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