List of tunnels in the Alps
Encyclopedia
There is a large number of tunnels in the Alps
of Central Europe. They have the advantage of provide shorter routes and faster journey times and avoid narrow, winding roads over mountain passes which may well be affected by winter conditions. This list is intended to give an overview of the main Alpine tunnels.
A "list of the longest tunnels in the world" is here.
France
Italy
Vorarlberg
Tyrol
Salzburg
Carinthia
Upper Austria
Lower Austria
Vienna
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
of Central Europe. They have the advantage of provide shorter routes and faster journey times and avoid narrow, winding roads over mountain passes which may well be affected by winter conditions. This list is intended to give an overview of the main Alpine tunnels.
A "list of the longest tunnels in the world" is here.
FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- Mont Cenis Tunnel (railway) and Fréjus road tunnel
- Mont Blanc TunnelMont Blanc TunnelThe Mont Blanc Tunnel is a road tunnel in the Alps under the Mont Blanc mountain, linking Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France , and Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, Italy . It is one of the major trans-Alpine transport routes, particularly for Italy, which relies on the tunnel for transporting as much as...
(road tunnel) - Tenda Tunnels (roadCol de Tende Road Tunnelthumb|Portal on Italian sideCol de Tende Road Tunnel is a 3182 metre long road tunnel running under Col de Tende between France and Italy. It was inaugurated in 1882 and it was until 1964 the longest road tunnel in the Alps. At its opening time it may have been one of world's longest road tunnels....
and railway) - Col de Tende Road TunnelCol de Tende Road Tunnelthumb|Portal on Italian sideCol de Tende Road Tunnel is a 3182 metre long road tunnel running under Col de Tende between France and Italy. It was inaugurated in 1882 and it was until 1964 the longest road tunnel in the Alps. At its opening time it may have been one of world's longest road tunnels....
(one of the oldest long road tunnels, 3.2 km) - Buco di Viso (mule track, oldest tunnel in the Alps)
ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
- Mont Cenis Tunnel (railway) and Fréjus road tunnel
- Great St Bernard TunnelGreat St Bernard TunnelThe Great St Bernard Tunnel is a road tunnel complementing the Great St Bernard Pass, linking Martigny with Saint-Rhémy-en-Bosses ....
(Gran San Bernardo / Grosser Sankt Bernhard, road tunnel) - Mont Blanc TunnelMont Blanc TunnelThe Mont Blanc Tunnel is a road tunnel in the Alps under the Mont Blanc mountain, linking Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France , and Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, Italy . It is one of the major trans-Alpine transport routes, particularly for Italy, which relies on the tunnel for transporting as much as...
(road tunnel) - Simplon TunnelSimplon TunnelThe Simplon Tunnel is an Alpine railway tunnel that connects the Swiss town of Brig with Domodossola in Italy, though its relatively straight trajectory does not run under Simplon Pass itself. It actually consists of two single-track tunnels built nearly 20 years apart...
(railway tunnel) - Tenda Tunnels (road and railway)
- Col de Tende Road TunnelCol de Tende Road Tunnelthumb|Portal on Italian sideCol de Tende Road Tunnel is a 3182 metre long road tunnel running under Col de Tende between France and Italy. It was inaugurated in 1882 and it was until 1964 the longest road tunnel in the Alps. At its opening time it may have been one of world's longest road tunnels....
(one of the oldest long road tunnels, 3.2 km) - Buco di Viso (mule track, oldest tunnel in the Alps)
VorarlbergVorarlbergVorarlberg is the westernmost federal-state of Austria. Although it is the second smallest in terms of area and population , it borders three countries: Germany , Switzerland and Liechtenstein...
- Achrain Tunnel (3,340 m)
- Amberg Tunnel (2,978 m)
- Arlberg Straßen Tunnel (13,972 m)
- Arlberg Tunnel (10,249 m, railway tunnel)
- Erzberg Tunnel (5,700 m, in planning)
- Langen Tunnel (2,433 m)
- Letze Tunnel (2,612 m, in planning)
- Pfänder Tunnel (6,718 m)
TyrolTyrol (state)Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
- Arlberg Road TunnelArlberg Road TunnelThe Arlberg Road Tunnel with a length of 13,976 metres is Austria's longest road tunnel. It carries the S16 Arlbergschnellstraße under the Arlberg massif from Tyrol to Vorarlberg....
(13,972 m) - Arlberg Railway Tunnel (10,249 m, railway tunnel)
- Brandberg Tunnel (2,130 m)
- Felbertauern Tunnel (5,304 m)
- Inntal Tunnel (12,696 m, railway tunnel only for goods traffic)
- Harpfnerwand Tunnel (2,590 m)
- Landecker Tunnel (6,955 m)
- Lermoos Tunnel (3,168 m)
- Perjen Tunnel (2,993 m)
- Pianner/Quadratscher Tunnel
- Roppener Tunnel (5,095 m)
- Strenger Tunnel (5,851 m)
- Tschirgant Tunnel (4,310 m, under construction)
SalzburgSalzburg (state)Salzburg is a state or Land of Austria with an area of 7,156 km2, located adjacent to the German border. It is also known as Salzburgerland, to distinguish it from its capital city, also named Salzburg...
- Felbertauern Tunnel (5,304 m)
- Ofenauer Tunnel (1,390 m)
- Hiefler Tunnel (2,004 m)
- Katschberg Tunnel (5,439 m)
- Schmitten TunnelSchmitten TunnelThe Schmitten Tunnel is the bypass tunnel for the town of Zell am See in Austria and a road tunnel on the Pinzgau Road in the Austrian state of Salzburg....
(5,111 m) - Schönberg Tunnel (2,988 m)
- Tauern Road TunnelTauern Road TunnelThe Tauern Road Tunnel is located in the Austrian federal state of Salzburg in Austria on the Tauern Autobahn north - south connection between Germany and Italy and Slovenia. This is a toll road. Since October 2007, the toll has been 12 euros per car and journey...
(6,401 m) - Tauern Railway Tunnel (8,550 m)
CarinthiaCarinthia (state)Carinthia is the southernmost Austrian state or Land. Situated within the Eastern Alps it is chiefly noted for its mountains and lakes.The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Austro-Bavarian group...
- Ehrentalerberg (3,345 m)
- Gräbern Tunnel (2,148 m)
- Karawanken Tunnel (railway)Karawanken Tunnel (railway)The Karawanken Tunnel is the fourth longest railway tunnel in Austria and the longest in Slovenia with a length of . The railway passes under the Rožca saddle between Rosenbach in southern Austria and Jesenice in northern Slovenia...
(7,976 m) - Karawanken Tunnel (motorway)Karawanken Tunnel (motorway)The Karawanken Tunnel is a motorway tunnel crossing the Alpine Karavanke mountain range between Austria and Slovenia, with a total length of , enclosure between the portals.Its construction began in 1986 and it opened on June 1, 1991...
(7,864 m) - Koralm TunnelKoralm TunnelThe Koralm Tunnel is a railway tunnel under construction in Austria under the Koralpe mountain range. It will be 32,9 km long and up to 1.250 m deep and be a part of the 130 km Koralmbahn linking Graz with Klagenfurt. The tunnel will be composed by two single track tubes linked every 500...
(32,900 m, railway tunnel under construction) - Katschberg Tunnel (5,439 m)
- Oswaldiberg Tunnel (4,307 m)
Upper AustriaUpper AustriaUpper Austria is one of the nine states or Bundesländer of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders on Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as on the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg...
- Bartl Kreuz Tunnel (2,000 m)
- Bosruck Tunnel (5,500 m)
- Geißwand Tunnel (2,102 m, under construction)
- Klaus Tunnel (2,144 m)
- Lainberg Tunnel (2,278 m)
- Pfaffenboden Tunnel (3,430 m)
- Spering Tunnel (2,852 m)
- Unterweitersdorfer Berg Tunnel (4,500 m, in planning)
Lower AustriaLower AustriaLower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
- Semmering Scheitel Tunnel (3,489 m)
- Wienerwald Tunnel (13,350 m, railway tunnel under construction)
Styria
- Bosruck Tunnel (5,500 m)
- Falkenberg Tunnel (3,000 m, in planning)
- Ganzstein Semmering Tunnel (3,489 m)
- Ganzstein Tunnel (2,135 m)
- Gleinalm Tunnel (8,320 m)
- Gratkorn Tunnel Nord and Süd (635m / 660m, 798m / 786m)
- Herzogberg Tunnel (2,007 m)
- Koralm TunnelKoralm TunnelThe Koralm Tunnel is a railway tunnel under construction in Austria under the Koralpe mountain range. It will be 32,9 km long and up to 1.250 m deep and be a part of the 130 km Koralmbahn linking Graz with Klagenfurt. The tunnel will be composed by two single track tubes linked every 500...
(32,900 m, railway tunnel under construction) - Plabutsch TunnelPlabutsch tunnelThe Plabutsch Tunnel is an approximately 10 km long road tunnel west side of Graz, Austria....
(9,919 m) - Pretallerkogel Tunnel (446m / 535m)
- Schartnerkogel Tunnel (1,167m / 1,232m)
- Selzthal Tunnel (1,010m / 964m)
- Spital Tunnel (2,597 m)
- Tanzenberg Tunnel (2,523 m)
- Bruck Tunnel (1237m/1250m)
- Rottenmann Tunnel (400m)
- Wald Tunnel (2,924 m)
ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
- Lainzer Tunnel (12,800 m, railway tunnel under construction)
- Wienerwald Tunnel (13,350 m, railway tunnel under construction)
Longest tunnels
- Gotthard Base TunnelGotthard Base TunnelThe Gotthard Base Tunnel is a new railway tunnel beneath the Swiss Alps, expected to open in 2016. With a route length of and a total of of tunnels, shafts and passages, it is the world's longest rail tunnel, surpassing the Japanese Seikan Tunnel....
(railway tunnel, under construction until 2015, 57 km) - Lötschberg Base TunnelLötschberg Base TunnelThe Lötschberg Base Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the BLS Lötschbergbahn's Lötschberg Line cutting through the Alps of Switzerland some below the existing Lötschberg Tunnel. It is currently the world's longest land tunnel and accommodates passenger and freight trains. It runs between Frutigen,...
(railway tunnel, 34.6 km) - Simplon TunnelSimplon TunnelThe Simplon Tunnel is an Alpine railway tunnel that connects the Swiss town of Brig with Domodossola in Italy, though its relatively straight trajectory does not run under Simplon Pass itself. It actually consists of two single-track tunnels built nearly 20 years apart...
(railway tunnel, 19.8 km) - Vereina TunnelVereina TunnelThe Vereina Tunnel is a railway tunnel situated in eastern Switzerland, which at 19,058 m is the longest tunnel on the Swiss RhB railway network as well as the world's longest metre gauge railway tunnel...
(narrow gauge railway tunnel with car transportation, 19 km) - Gotthard Road TunnelGotthard Road TunnelThe St. Gotthard Tunnel in Switzerland runs from Göschenen in the Canton of Uri at its northern portal, to Airolo in Ticino to the south, and is just under in length below the St. Gotthard Pass...
(road tunnel, 16.9 km) - Ceneri Base TunnelCeneri Base TunnelThe Ceneri Base Tunnel is a railway tunnel under construction in Switzerland's Canton Ticino. It will pass under Monte Ceneri between Camorino in the Magadino Flat and Vezia near Lugano...
(railway tunnel, under construction until 2016, 15.4 km) - Furka Base Tunnel (narrow gauge railway tunnel with car transportation, 15.4 km)
- Gotthard Rail TunnelGotthard Rail TunnelThe Gotthard Rail Tunnel, is a 15-kilometre long railway tunnel and forms the summit of the Gotthard Railway in Switzerland. It connects Göschenen with Airolo and was the first tunnel through the Gotthard massif...
(railway tunnel, 15.0 km) - Lötschberg TunnelLötschberg TunnelThe Lötschberg Tunnel is a long railway tunnel on the Lötschberg Line, which connects Spiez and Brig at the northern end of the Simplon Tunnel cutting through the Alps of Switzerland. Its ends are at the towns of Kandersteg in the Canton of Berne and Goppenstein in the Canton of...
(railway tunnel, 14.6 km) - Zimmerberg Base TunnelZimmerberg Base TunnelZimmerberg Base Tunnel is a railway tunnel in Switzerland. It is divided into two sections: I and II. Zimmerberg I is about 10 km long and links Zurich with Thalwil.Zimmerberg Base Tunnel II work is suspended...
(railway tunnel, 9.4 km) - Seelisberg TunnelSeelisberg TunnelThe Seelisberg Tunnel is a motorway tunnel in Switzerland, and forms part of the A2 motorway from Basel to Chiasso.The tunnel is around 9 km long.It lies in the southeastern part of the Lake of Lucerne....
(road tunnel, 9.2 km) - Ricken Tunnel (railway tunnel, 8.6 km)
Other well-known tunnels
- San Bernardino (road tunnel, 6.6 km)
- Great St Bernard TunnelGreat St Bernard TunnelThe Great St Bernard Tunnel is a road tunnel complementing the Great St Bernard Pass, linking Martigny with Saint-Rhémy-en-Bosses ....
(road tunnel, 5.9 km) - Albula TunnelAlbula RailwayIn 1890, the Davos hotelier Willem-Jan Holsboer proposed the construction of a rail link from Chur via Davos, and through a tunnel under the Scaletta Pass, to St Moritz, and then onwards via the Maloja Pass, to Chiavenna in Italy. Holsboer later had to abandon this planned Scalettabahn, in favour...
(narrow gauge railway tunnel, 5.9 km) - Furka Summit TunnelFurka Summit TunnelThe Furka Summit Tunnel is a long railway tunnel in southern Switzerland. It lies at an altitude of . The summit tunnel was completed in 1925, and first opened on 3 July 1926...
(narrow gauge railway tunnel , heritage railway, 1.9 km) - Munt la Schera TunnelMunt la Schera TunnelThe Munt la Schera Tunnel is a one-way road tunnel located in the Swiss canton of Grisons. It connects the Engadin valley with Lago di Livigno....
(road tunnel)
See also
- TunnelTunnelA 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...
- List of tunnels in Switzerland
- List of tunnels in Austria
- List of the longest tunnels in the world
Sources
- Uwe A. Oster (Hrsg.), Wege über die Alpen. Von der Frühzeit bis heute, Darmstadt 2006, ISBN 389678269X.
- www.AlpenTunnel.de Historische Bahntransversalen in den Alpen