Wushaoling Tunnel
Encyclopedia
The Wushaoling Tunnel is a 21.05 km dual-bore railway tunnel
in Gansu
, north-west China. The east-bound bore opened on 30 March 2006. The west-bound bore is expected to open in October 2006. It was briefly the longest railway tunnel in China until the opening of the 27.84 km Taihang Tunnel
in late 2007.
-Wuwei section of the Lanxin railway
line, the tunnel has reduced the distance between Dacaigou and Longgou by 30.4 km. Key to the Asia-Europe Land Bridge
, the tunnel is part of the 3,651 km section linking Lianyungang
in East China with Ürümqi
in Northwest China.
was adopted as the construction technique. An elliptical cross-section (horseshoe shape) was used for the majority of the tunnel, with a circular section used in the geologically challenging Fault Zone No. 7. The right (east-bound) bore was constructed first, while the left tunnel was a parallel drift with smaller diameter to be enlarged later. The gradient is mainly 1.1%. The Wuwei portal has an altitude of 2447 m, and the Lanzhou portal 2663 m. The maximum depth of the tunnel is 1100 m.
On 26 June 2003 Interfax reported that the total investment for the project was ¥
7 billion ($845 million), that the project commenced construction in November 2002 and that is was scheduled to take six and a half years to complete. Also reported was that Chinese steel manufacturer Lingyuan Iron and Steel (Linggang) would provide 4,360 tons of steel products for the tunnel project.
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...
in Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
, north-west China. The east-bound bore opened on 30 March 2006. The west-bound bore is expected to open in October 2006. It was briefly the longest railway tunnel in China until the opening of the 27.84 km Taihang Tunnel
Taihang Tunnel
Taihang Tunnel is currently the longest mountain railway tunnel in China. It is a double track tunnel, and was built to allow the Shitai Passenger Railway to cross the Taihang Mountains. The left track is 27,839 metres long and the right one is 27,848 metres long...
in late 2007.
Location
Located on the LanzhouLanzhou
Lanzhou is the capital and largest city of Gansu Province in Northwest China. A prefecture-level city, it is a key regional transportation hub, allowing areas further west to maintain railroad connections to the eastern half of the country....
-Wuwei section of the Lanxin railway
Lanxin railway
The Lanzhou−Xinjiang Railway or Lanxin Railway is the longest railway in northwestern China. It runs from Lanzhou, Gansu, through the Hexi Corridor, to Ürümqi, in the Xinjiang. It is Xinjiang's only rail link with the rest of China...
line, the tunnel has reduced the distance between Dacaigou and Longgou by 30.4 km. Key to the Asia-Europe Land Bridge
Lanxin railway
The Lanzhou−Xinjiang Railway or Lanxin Railway is the longest railway in northwestern China. It runs from Lanzhou, Gansu, through the Hexi Corridor, to Ürümqi, in the Xinjiang. It is Xinjiang's only rail link with the rest of China...
, the tunnel is part of the 3,651 km section linking Lianyungang
Lianyungang
Lianyungang is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China. It borders Yancheng to its southeast, Huai'an and Suqian to its south, Xuzhou to its southwest, and the province of Shandong to its north...
in East China with Ürümqi
Ürümqi
Ürümqi , formerly Tihwa , is the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, in the northwest of the country....
in Northwest China.
Infrastructure
The tunnel consists of two bores with centres separated by 40 m. It is designed to allow speeds of 160 km/h. The tunnel travels through complex geology, involving four regional fault zones and soft rock. The New Austrian Tunnelling methodNew Austrian Tunnelling method
The New Austrian Tunnelling method was developed between 1957 and 1965 in Austria. It was given its name in Salzburg in 1962 to distinguish it from old Austrian tunnelling approach. The main contributors to the development of NATM were Ladislaus von Rabcewicz, Leopold Müller and Franz Pacher...
was adopted as the construction technique. An elliptical cross-section (horseshoe shape) was used for the majority of the tunnel, with a circular section used in the geologically challenging Fault Zone No. 7. The right (east-bound) bore was constructed first, while the left tunnel was a parallel drift with smaller diameter to be enlarged later. The gradient is mainly 1.1%. The Wuwei portal has an altitude of 2447 m, and the Lanzhou portal 2663 m. The maximum depth of the tunnel is 1100 m.
On 26 June 2003 Interfax reported that the total investment for the project was ¥
Renminbi
The Renminbi is the official currency of the People's Republic of China . Renminbi is legal tender in mainland China, but not in Hong Kong or Macau. It is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the PRC...
7 billion ($845 million), that the project commenced construction in November 2002 and that is was scheduled to take six and a half years to complete. Also reported was that Chinese steel manufacturer Lingyuan Iron and Steel (Linggang) would provide 4,360 tons of steel products for the tunnel project.
Location
- Lanzhou portal (east): 37.1236°N 102.9630°W
- Wuwei portal (west): 37.2970°N 102.8998°W