Hitra Tunnel

Hitra Tunnel
Hitratunnelen
View of the north entrance to the tunnel
Overview
Location Sør-Trøndelag, Norway
Route Norwegian National Road 714
Operation
Opened 8 December 1994
Traffic Automotive
Technical
Length 5,645 metres (18,520 ft)
Number of lanes 3
Lowest elevation −264 metres (−866.1 ft)
Grade 10%

The Hitra Tunnel (Norwegian: Hitratunnelen) is an undersea tunnel connecting the island municipality of Hitra to the mainland municipality of Snillfjord in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The tunnel is 5,645 metres (18,520 ft) long and reaches a depth of 264 metres (866 ft) below sea level, making it the deepest tunnel in the world when it was built.[1][2]

The tunnel begins in Hitra on the island of Jøsnøya, just south of Sandstad. The tunnel then runs under the Trondheimsleia to the island of Hemnskjela in Snillfjord. There is a small bridge connecting Hemnskjela to the mainland.

The tunnel has 3 lanes. Nearly 2,500 cars are hurtling through it every day. Electronics and pumps are handling over 10,000 gallons of water per hour. (Source: Hitra·Frøya Nr. 46, 36. årgang, Tirsdag 21 juni 2011.)

Media gallery

References

  1. ^ Merzagora, Eugenio A.; Lotsberg, Gunnar, eds. "Road Tunnels in Norway > 3 000 m". Road Tunnels in Norway. http://www.lotsberg.net/data/norway/list.html. Retrieved 2010-12-28. 
  2. ^ Store norske leksikon. "Hitratunnelen" (in Norwegian). http://www.snl.no/Hitratunnelen. Retrieved 2010-12-28.