The Great Istanbul Tunnel, a 6.5km multi-purpose underwater tunnel crossing the Bosphorus River and linking Europe and Asia, is set to cater to 1.3 million passengers daily when it opens its doors in 2028
By 2028, millions will be able to travel between Europe and Asia by an underwater tunnel. The Great Istanbul Tunnel, a 6.5km multi-purpose underwater tunnel crossing the Bosphorus River and linking Europe and Asia, is set to cater to 1.3 million passengers daily when it opens its doors in 2028.
Türkiye’s transport and infrastructure minister Adil Karaismailoğlu unveiled an update on the plans for the project on 10 May, confirming the timeline for the opening of the combined highway and railway tunnel and additional details on the project, touted as the world’s longest underwater tunnel.
The Great Istanbul Tunnel will feature three levels, two for road traffic and one for a rail system. It will have a diameter of 19m, be situated 110m below sea level and will connect the highways between Istanbul’s three airports: Istanbul Atatürk Airport, Sabiha Gökçen Airport, Istanbul Airport, and the nine rail lines of the Istanbul Metro.
The railway part of the Great Istanbul Tunnel will comprise 13 stations, accommodating 70,000 passengers per hour in one direction. It will also connect with 11 other railways, and allow the Metrobus line, a crucial part of Istanbul’s transportation system, to function at optimal capacity. Minister Karaismailoğlu stated that the scheme would offer rail travel times across the Bosphorus of just over 40 minutes.
The need for the scheme was highlighted, with data from Istanbul’s transportation plan indicating that daily crossings between the European and Asian sides of the river will exceed 3M in the future, a significant increase from the current figure of over 2M. In addition to this, plans are underway for a high-capacity rail system running from west to east across Istanbul, according to the minister.
The Great Istanbul Tunnel project is being excavated using one of the world’s largest tunnel machines (TBM), an impressive piece of machinery measuring 83m in length and 20m in width. This marks the third tunnel crossing the Bosphorus, following the construction of the 3.5km Marmaray Tunnel and the 5.4km Eurasia Tunnel.
Elsewhere, we’ve reported on the abanoned tunnels in the UK. From reports of “strange noises” to alleged Satanic activities, these creepy tunnels are not somewhere you’d want your torch to lose battery.
Buried beneath the wild moors which separate Yorkshire and Greater Manchester, the four underground tunnels took 17 years to dig out – costing the lives of at least 50 workers. The real death toll, however, is likely much higher. One of the four tunnels between Marsden, West Yorkshire, and Oldham, Greater Manchester, is the UK’s deepest and longest canal tunnel at more than three miles long. Standedge Tunnel was built using just shovels, picks, explosive powder and the sheer human strength of 2,500 people.
Engineers faced numerous problems, from excessive water to miscalculations that left the tunnel with an ‘S’ bend in the middle. The canal tunnel is the oldest of four tunnels that run parallel beneath the Pennine hills between Diggle in Oldham and Marsden, near Huddersfield.
The canal tunnel was opened in 1811. The other tunnels came later and are railway tunnels, with only one now used by trains, the other two being used by maintenance workers. The ventilation shafts are among the incredible features. Most of them rise more than 400ft above the rails, with one a staggering 512ft.
Urban explorer Daniel Sims, also known as Bearded Reality on YouTube, has been inside the railway tunnels. While venturing inside is strongly not recommended due to being dangerous and involving illegal trespassing), he told of his ‘creepy’ experience where he heard strange noises and big blasts of air caused by passing trains.