The Kilsby Tunnel is a railway tunnel

Tunnel

A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...

 on the West Coast Main Line

West Coast Main Line

The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...

 railway in England. It was designed and engineered by Robert Stephenson

Robert Stephenson

Robert Stephenson FRS was an English civil engineer. He was the only son of George Stephenson, the famed locomotive builder and railway engineer; many of the achievements popularly credited to his father were actually the joint efforts of father and son.-Early life :He was born on the 16th of...

.

The tunnel is located near the village of Kilsby

Kilsby

Kilsby is a village and civil parish in the Daventry district of Northamptonshire, England situated approximately five miles south-east of Rugby....

 in Northamptonshire

Northamptonshire

Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...

 roughly 5 miles (8 km) south-east of Rugby

Rugby, Warwickshire

Rugby is a market town in Warwickshire, England, located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 61,988 making it the second largest town in the county...

 and is 2432 yards (2,223.8 m) long.

The tunnel was opened in 1838 as a part of the London and Birmingham Railway

London and Birmingham Railway

The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....

. It is today the 18th longest tunnel on the British railway system

Rail transport in Great Britain

The railway system in Great Britain is the oldest in the world, with the world's first locomotive-hauled public railway opening in 1825. As of 2010, it consists of of standard gauge lines , of which are electrified. These lines range from single to double, triple, quadruple track and up to twelve...

.

The tunnel took far longer, and cost far more money to build than had been anticipated. This was because the tunnel builders encountered unexpected quicksand

Quicksand

Quicksand is a colloid hydrogel consisting of fine granular matter , clay, and water.Water circulation underground can focus in an area with the optimal mixture of fine sands and other materials such as clay. The water moves up and then down slowly in a convection-like manner throughout a column...

 which trial borings into the hill had not revealed. The excess water from the quicksand had to be pumped out, a process which took several years. Similar problems were encountered with nearby Blisworth tunnel

Blisworth Tunnel

Blisworth Tunnel is a canal tunnel on the Grand Union Canal in Northamptonshire, England between the villages of Stoke Bruerne at the southern end and Blisworth at the northern end.-Measurements:...

 on the Grand Union Canal

Grand Union Canal

The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. Its main line connects London and Birmingham, stretching for 137 miles with 166 locks...

a few decades earlier.

The length of time it took to build the tunnel delayed the opening of the London and Birmingham Railway.

It took three years, and cost £320,000 to build — three times the original estimate (£23,758,000 in 2005 pounds).

External links

• Kilsby Tunnel includes the classic image of the tunnel under construction.