Kaunas Railway Tunnel
Encyclopedia
Kaunas railway tunnel is one of the two tunnels existing in Lithuania
and the only railway tunnel operating in the Baltic states
. It connects Vilnius
and Kaunas
. The length of the tunnel is 1,285 metres (0,803 miles), height – 6,6 metres, width – 8,8 metres. Kaunas railway tunnel was included into the Registry of Immovable Cultural Heritage Sites of the Republic of Lithuania in 1996.
lost the Crimean War
, the importance of use of tactical use of modern inventions, as well as railways
. In February 1851 the Tsarist Government of Russia made a decision to build the Saint Petersburg – Warsaw railway line with a length of approximately 1,250 kilometres. It was built to Russian gauge
. Starting from 1858 the Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railway
line connecting Saint Petersburg
and Warsaw
was being built quite intensively. The government of Prussia addressed Russia asking permission to start building a railway from Virbalis
, which was situated near its border, towards Lentvaris
through Kaunas. However, the terrain around Kaunas' centre is hilly and unfavorable for the direct rail passage. The main and most complicated objects were the tunnel and largest in Lithuania railway bridge
over the Nemunas
river. The construction of the tunnel started on 15 May 1859, whereas the construction of the bridge started a bit earlier – at the end of April, 1859. The railway from Virbalis to Kaunas was also being built.
. The tunnel was dug from both sides in a 30-metre-high hill, under the residential area of Šančiai
of Kaunas. The tunnel's diameter has the shape of a horseshoe
. The upper part was made of bricks (stonework),the lower part, which is used as a basement, is made of granite
stones. Seven pits were built at the time of construction of tunnel. Through them the steam machines could eliminate the excavated soil. Ernest Goüin et Cie also built two brickyards in Šančiai
and Petrašiūnai
areas, because especially good quality brinks were needed for the tunnel arches, water passes and other constructions. The summer of 1860 was rainy, therefore lots of produced bricks were found to be defective. In order to proceed with the construction, the bricks were being bought and delivered from the Netherlands
and Germany
. The construction of the tunnel was finished on 15 November 1861. The exploitation of the railway bridge over the Nemunas river started on 4 February 1862. The tunnel started operating in spring, 1862.
branch towards Prussia
, of the Saint Petersburg
-Warsaw
railway. The tunnel's gauge was rebuilt to standard gauge
by the Germans
during World War I
. The Kaunas tunnel was bombed by the retreating armed forces of Germany
on 30 July 1944. The biggest explosion deformed a 100-metre-long section of the tunnel. The Soviet army
rebuilt the tunnel in 1,5 months later in 1944.
The explosions changed the hydrological condition of the tunnel.
Water began to deform the tunnel in 1947-1948. Minor reconstruction was carried out in 1949. A train accident
occurred in the tunnel in 1963. It was determined to leave one rail track
, instead of two in 1964. Passenger locomotives were completely replaced by electric locomotives in 1975. As the last repairs on the tunnel had only been made in 1972, railway traffic was not safe due to the existing emergency state of the tunnel, thus, the speed of the traffic was limited to 40 km/h. In 2002−2003 the Danish
company Niras made adjustments to the feasibility study, and an application for European Union
assistance was made in accordance with the conclusions drawn by this company. The tunnel reconstruction project was launched in 2007.
The tunnel was reconstructed between 2008 and 2009. It was closed to rail traffic on 1 February 2008 and passenger traffic from Vilnius direction through Kaunas was diverted from central Kaunas Railway Station
to a small station in Petrašiūnai
. Reinforced concrete
was installed in its vaults
and walls, its portals were rebuilt, and its drainage
was improved. The reconstruction also included installing lighting in the tunnel, the provision of smoke and water sensors along with a fire alarm system connected to the central control unit. The powerful fire extinguishing system was installed during the reconstruction of the tunnel. The pipes built underneath the tunnel are immediately filled with 35 cubic metres of water which is then sprayed via special sprinklers that line the tunnel. It is complemented by an efficient hazard monitoring system. The new communication system makes it possible to call for help in case of an emergency. The tunnel was opened after major reconstruction on 17 November 2009. After the reconstruction, the speed limit
of the traffic in Kaunas tunnel has been increased to 83 km/h.
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
and the only railway tunnel operating in the Baltic states
Baltic states
The term Baltic states refers to the Baltic territories which gained independence from the Russian Empire in the wake of World War I: primarily the contiguous trio of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania ; Finland also fell within the scope of the term after initially gaining independence in the 1920s.The...
. It connects Vilnius
Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
and Kaunas
Kaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
. The length of the tunnel is 1,285 metres (0,803 miles), height – 6,6 metres, width – 8,8 metres. Kaunas railway tunnel was included into the Registry of Immovable Cultural Heritage Sites of the Republic of Lithuania in 1996.
Background
After the Russian EmpireRussian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
lost the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
, the importance of use of tactical use of modern inventions, as well as railways
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
. In February 1851 the Tsarist Government of Russia made a decision to build the Saint Petersburg – Warsaw railway line with a length of approximately 1,250 kilometres. It was built to Russian gauge
Russian gauge
In railway terminology, Russian gauge refers to railway track with a gauge between 1,520 mm and . In a narrow sense as defined by Russian Railways it refers to gauge....
. Starting from 1858 the Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railway
Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railway
The Saint Petersburg – Warsaw Railway, Russian "Санкт-Петербурго-Варшавская железная дорога" is a long railway, built in the 19th century by the Russian Empire to connect Russia with Central Europe. At the time the entire railway was within Russia, as Warsaw was under a Russian partition of Poland...
line connecting Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
was being built quite intensively. The government of Prussia addressed Russia asking permission to start building a railway from Virbalis
Virbalis
Virbalis is a city in the Vilkaviškis district municipality, Lithuania. It is located west of Vilkaviškis.As German Wirballen, Polish Wierzbołów, or Russian Verzhbolovo , it is frequently mentioned in historical as well in modern literature...
, which was situated near its border, towards Lentvaris
Lentvaris
Lentvaris is a city in eastern Lithuania, 9 km east form Trakai, an important center of transportation, because many roads and railroads cross here.Lake Lentvaris is located near the city.- History :...
through Kaunas. However, the terrain around Kaunas' centre is hilly and unfavorable for the direct rail passage. The main and most complicated objects were the tunnel and largest in Lithuania railway bridge
Railway Bridge, Kaunas
Railway Bridge in Kaunas crosses Nemunas river to connect Central Kaunas and lower Freda of Aleksotas district. Because of its green paint, it is often called Green . Construction of the bridge started in 1859 and ended in 1862. The exploitation of the bridge started on the 4 February 1862...
over the Nemunas
Neman River
Neman or Niemen or Nemunas, is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipėda. It is the northern border between Lithuania and Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast in its lower reaches...
river. The construction of the tunnel started on 15 May 1859, whereas the construction of the bridge started a bit earlier – at the end of April, 1859. The railway from Virbalis to Kaunas was also being built.
Construction
Kaunas railway tunnel was built from 1859 till 1861. The construction was surveyed by the French engineer G. F. Perrot, as well as Lithuanian engineer Stanislovas Kerbedis. For construction works has been hired Ernest Goüin et Cie. company from ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. The tunnel was dug from both sides in a 30-metre-high hill, under the residential area of Šančiai
Šanciai
Šančiai is an elderate in the Lithuanian city of Kaunas. It is located on the right bank of the Nemunas River, and is divided into Higher and Lower Šančiai...
of Kaunas. The tunnel's diameter has the shape of a horseshoe
Horseshoe
A horseshoe, is a fabricated product, normally made of metal, although sometimes made partially or wholly of modern synthetic materials, designed to protect a horse's hoof from wear and tear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall...
. The upper part was made of bricks (stonework),the lower part, which is used as a basement, is made of granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
stones. Seven pits were built at the time of construction of tunnel. Through them the steam machines could eliminate the excavated soil. Ernest Goüin et Cie also built two brickyards in Šančiai
Šanciai
Šančiai is an elderate in the Lithuanian city of Kaunas. It is located on the right bank of the Nemunas River, and is divided into Higher and Lower Šančiai...
and Petrašiūnai
Petrašiunai
Petrašiūnai is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the Lithuanian city of Kaunas, with elderate status. In 2006 it occupied about 28.46 hectares, with a population of about 18,000. A part of the elderate belongs to the Kaunas Reservoir Regional Park....
areas, because especially good quality brinks were needed for the tunnel arches, water passes and other constructions. The summer of 1860 was rainy, therefore lots of produced bricks were found to be defective. In order to proceed with the construction, the bricks were being bought and delivered from the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The construction of the tunnel was finished on 15 November 1861. The exploitation of the railway bridge over the Nemunas river started on 4 February 1862. The tunnel started operating in spring, 1862.
Operation history
The tunnel was opened for traffic in 1862. It was on the Lentvaris - Kaunas - VirbalisVirbalis
Virbalis is a city in the Vilkaviškis district municipality, Lithuania. It is located west of Vilkaviškis.As German Wirballen, Polish Wierzbołów, or Russian Verzhbolovo , it is frequently mentioned in historical as well in modern literature...
branch towards Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, of the Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
-Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
railway. The tunnel's gauge was rebuilt to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
by the Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. The Kaunas tunnel was bombed by the retreating armed forces of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on 30 July 1944. The biggest explosion deformed a 100-metre-long section of the tunnel. The Soviet army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
rebuilt the tunnel in 1,5 months later in 1944.
The explosions changed the hydrological condition of the tunnel.
Water began to deform the tunnel in 1947-1948. Minor reconstruction was carried out in 1949. A train accident
Train wreck
A train wreck or train crash is a type of disaster involving one or more trains. Train wrecks often occur as a result of miscommunication, as when a moving train meets another train on the same track; or an accident, such as when a train wheel jumps off a track in a derailment; or when a boiler...
occurred in the tunnel in 1963. It was determined to leave one rail track
Rail tracks
The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...
, instead of two in 1964. Passenger locomotives were completely replaced by electric locomotives in 1975. As the last repairs on the tunnel had only been made in 1972, railway traffic was not safe due to the existing emergency state of the tunnel, thus, the speed of the traffic was limited to 40 km/h. In 2002−2003 the Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
company Niras made adjustments to the feasibility study, and an application for European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
assistance was made in accordance with the conclusions drawn by this company. The tunnel reconstruction project was launched in 2007.
The tunnel was reconstructed between 2008 and 2009. It was closed to rail traffic on 1 February 2008 and passenger traffic from Vilnius direction through Kaunas was diverted from central Kaunas Railway Station
Kaunas Railway Station
Kaunas Railway Station is a Lithuanian Railways central railway station at the eastern edge of central part of Kaunas, Lithuania. Kaunas Railway Station was included into the Registry of Immovable Cultural Heritage Sites of the Republic of Lithuania in 2003....
to a small station in Petrašiūnai
Petrašiunai
Petrašiūnai is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the Lithuanian city of Kaunas, with elderate status. In 2006 it occupied about 28.46 hectares, with a population of about 18,000. A part of the elderate belongs to the Kaunas Reservoir Regional Park....
. Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
was installed in its vaults
Vault (architecture)
A Vault is an architectural term for an arched form used to provide a space with a ceiling or roof. The parts of a vault exert lateral thrust that require a counter resistance. When vaults are built underground, the ground gives all the resistance required...
and walls, its portals were rebuilt, and its drainage
Drainage
Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of surface and sub-surface water from an area. Many agricultural soils need drainage to improve production or to manage water supplies.-Early history:...
was improved. The reconstruction also included installing lighting in the tunnel, the provision of smoke and water sensors along with a fire alarm system connected to the central control unit. The powerful fire extinguishing system was installed during the reconstruction of the tunnel. The pipes built underneath the tunnel are immediately filled with 35 cubic metres of water which is then sprayed via special sprinklers that line the tunnel. It is complemented by an efficient hazard monitoring system. The new communication system makes it possible to call for help in case of an emergency. The tunnel was opened after major reconstruction on 17 November 2009. After the reconstruction, the speed limit
Speed limit
Road speed limits are used in most countries to regulate the speed of road vehicles. Speed limits may define maximum , minimum or no speed limit and are normally indicated using a traffic sign...
of the traffic in Kaunas tunnel has been increased to 83 km/h.