There are 14 open road tunnels in Iceland in the Icelandic road system. Additionally, there is one road tunnel only for use by a silicon plant in Húsavík. Tunnels in Iceland are usually built under mountains to prevent winter isolation of remote communities which would otherwise have to depend on high roads that are often closed due to snow, to shorten distance between communities, and to increase road safety by bypassing dangerous stretches of road. A tunnel under a fjord, the Hvalfjörður Tunnel, is among the longest underwater road tunnels in the world, and goes as deep as 165 m (541 ft) below sea level.[1]
Hvalfjörður Tunnel is 5,770 m (18,930 ft) long, and reaches a depth of 165 m (541 ft) below sea level.
Tunneling is a relatively recent trend in Icelandic road infrastructure. It started off slowly and was at first only used in extreme circumstances, such as under Arnardalshamar in 1948. The first tunnel of significant length was opened in 1967 and provided the northern town of Siglufjörður with its first year-round road link to the rest of the country. The second tunnel, opened in 1977, replaced a difficult road over the mountain pass Oddsskarð in eastern Iceland, which could only be used during the short summer and was the only road link to the town of Neskaupstaður. The third tunnel was opened in 1992 and replaced a very hazardous mountainside road to the northern town of Ólafsfjörður. All three of these tunnels were built as a single lane with widenings at regular intervals, where vehicles coming from opposite directions can pass. As improved engineering methods made tunneling cheaper and Iceland became more prosperous in the 1990s, tunnels became viable options for places where they had not been considered before. In 1996 the Vestfjarðagöng tunnel opened in the Westfjords region; it ended the winter isolation of three villages by linking them to the town of Ísafjörður. This tunnel was the last one built with single-lane segments.
In 1998 the sub-sea Hvalfjörður Tunnel opened, reducing the distance from Reykjavík to the town of Akranes by 60 kilometers and consequently abolishing the ferry service between the two. The distance between Reykjavík and other destinations on the north side of the fjord Hvalfjörður was reduced by 45 kilometers. It was the first tunnel in Iceland to have been financed, built and operated by a private entity and, as such, it was also the first tunnel where tolls were charged. The original plan assumed it would take 20 years (until 2018) to pay back the cost of building the tunnel and that the tunnel. As per the original plan, the tunnel was turned over to the state on the 30th of September 2018 when the Icelandic Road Administration took over its operation. Traffic has proved to be significantly higher than originally projected. So high in fact, that the operator of the tunnel has suggested building a new tunnel alongside the current one, since traffic is reaching the threshold mandated by European regulation (10,000 vehicles daily) where traffic in opposing directions is meant to be separated.
Nine tunnels have opened since the beginning of the 21st century. In the 2010s, Bolungarvíkurgöng on route 61 in Westfjords between Hnifsdalur and Bolungarvik, replacing the road which was often affected by rockfalls and avalanches, and Héðinsfjarðargöng I and II on route 76 in Northeastern Region between the towns Ólafsfjörður and Siglufjörður, reducing the distance between the towns to 15 km.
aSingle lane with widenings for passing. bThere is a third lane for passing on the uphill side at the north end of the tunnel. *Under construction. **In planning.
^. Archived from the original on 2011-06-07. Retrieved 25 Sep 2010.
^"Húsavíkurhöfðagöng opnuð í morgun". Retrieved 2017-11-05.
^"Fjarðarheiðargöng á áætlun og verði tilbúin 2029". RÚV (in Icelandic). 2021-07-02. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
^"The Road System 2012" (PDF). Icelandic Road Administration, ICERA (Vegagerðin). May 2012. Retrieved 2013-03-30.
January 07, 2023
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There are 14 open road tunnels in Iceland in the Icelandic road system Additionally there is one road tunnel only for use by a silicon plant in Husavik Tunnels in Iceland are usually built under mountains to prevent winter isolation of remote communities which would otherwise have to depend on high roads that are often closed due to snow to shorten distance between communities and to increase road safety by bypassing dangerous stretches of road A tunnel under a fjord the Hvalfjordur Tunnel is among the longest underwater road tunnels in the world and goes as deep as 165 m 541 ft below sea level 1 Hvalfjordur Tunnel is 5 770 m 18 930 ft long and reaches a depth of 165 m 541 ft below sea level Tunneling is a relatively recent trend in Icelandic road infrastructure It started off slowly and was at first only used in extreme circumstances such as under Arnardalshamar in 1948 The first tunnel of significant length was opened in 1967 and provided the northern town of Siglufjordur with its first year round road link to the rest of the country The second tunnel opened in 1977 replaced a difficult road over the mountain pass Oddsskard in eastern Iceland which could only be used during the short summer and was the only road link to the town of Neskaupstadur The third tunnel was opened in 1992 and replaced a very hazardous mountainside road to the northern town of olafsfjordur All three of these tunnels were built as a single lane with widenings at regular intervals where vehicles coming from opposite directions can pass As improved engineering methods made tunneling cheaper and Iceland became more prosperous in the 1990s tunnels became viable options for places where they had not been considered before In 1996 the Vestfjardagong tunnel opened in the Westfjords region it ended the winter isolation of three villages by linking them to the town of Isafjordur This tunnel was the last one built with single lane segments In 1998 the sub sea Hvalfjordur Tunnel opened reducing the distance from Reykjavik to the town of Akranes by 60 kilometers and consequently abolishing the ferry service between the two The distance between Reykjavik and other destinations on the north side of the fjord Hvalfjordur was reduced by 45 kilometers It was the first tunnel in Iceland to have been financed built and operated by a private entity and as such it was also the first tunnel where tolls were charged The original plan assumed it would take 20 years until 2018 to pay back the cost of building the tunnel and that the tunnel As per the original plan the tunnel was turned over to the state on the 30th of September 2018 when the Icelandic Road Administration took over its operation Traffic has proved to be significantly higher than originally projected So high in fact that the operator of the tunnel has suggested building a new tunnel alongside the current one since traffic is reaching the threshold mandated by European regulation 10 000 vehicles daily where traffic in opposing directions is meant to be separated Nine tunnels have opened since the beginning of the 21st century In the 2010s Bolungarvikurgong on route 61 in Westfjords between Hnifsdalur and Bolungarvik replacing the road which was often affected by rockfalls and avalanches and Hedinsfjardargong I and II on route 76 in Northeastern Region between the towns olafsfjordur and Siglufjordur reducing the distance between the towns to 15 km Tunnels EditName Length Lanes Date of opening Date of closure Location Route Vestfjardagong 9 160 m 30 052 ft total Breidadalur 4 150 m 13 615 ft Botnsdalur 2 907 m 9 537 ft and Tungudalur 2 103 m 6 900 ft tunnels meet in a 3 way junction 1a Breidadalur and Botnsdalur 2 Tungudalur September 1996 Westfjords Isafjordur Sudureyri Breidadalur 60 and 65Vadlaheidargong 7 400 m 24 278 ft 2 21 December 2018 Northeastern Region Eyjafjordur Fnjoskadalur 1Hedinsfjardargong I 7 100 m 23 294 ft 2 2 October 2010 Northeastern Region olafsfjordur Hedinsfjordur 76Nordfjardargong 7 908 m 25 945 ft 2 11 November 2017 2 Eastern Region Eskifjordur Nordfjordur 92Faskrudsfjardargong 5 900 m 19 357 ft 2 9 September 2005 Eastern Region Faskrudsfjordur Reydarfjordur 1Hvalfjordur Tunnel 5 770 m 18 930 ft 2b 1 July 1998 Capital Region Western Region 1Dyrafjardargong 5 600 m 18 373 ft 2 25 October 2020 Westfjords Arnarfjordur Dyrafjordur 60Bolungarvikurgong 5 400 m 17 717 ft 2 25 September 2010 3 Westfjords Bolungarvik Hnifsdal 61Hedinsfjardargong II 3 900 m 12 795 ft 2 2 October 2010 Northeastern Region Hedinsfjordur Siglufjordur 76Mulagong olafsfjardarmuli 3 400 m 11 155 ft 1a 1 March 1991 Northeastern Region Dalvik olafsfjord 82Almannaskardsgong 1 300 m 4 265 ft 2 24 June 2005 Eastern Region Route 1 east of Hofn 1Husavikurhofdi Tunnel 992 m 3 255 ft 2 4 November 2017 4 Northeastern Region Husavik Strakagong 800 m 2 625 ft 1a 1967 Northwestern Region west of Siglufjordur 76Oddskardsgong 640 m 2 100 ft 1a 1977 11 November 2017 Eastern Region west of Neskaupstadur 92Arnardalshamar Tunnel 30 m 98 ft 2 1948 Westfjords 61Fjardarheidargong 13 500 m 44 291 ft 2 2029 5 Eastern Region Egilsstadir Seydisfjordur 93Sources 1 6 aSingle lane with widenings for passing bThere is a third lane for passing on the uphill side at the north end of the tunnel Under construction In planning See also EditList of tunnels by location Transport in Iceland VegagerdinReferences Edit a b Merzagora Eugenio June 2006 Road Tunnels in Iceland The World s Longest Tunnel Page Retrieved 2008 10 22 Nordfjardargongin opnud Visir visir is Retrieved 2017 11 13 Bolungarvikurgong opnud Archived from the original on 2011 06 07 Retrieved 25 Sep 2010 Husavikurhofdagong opnud i morgun Retrieved 2017 11 05 Fjardarheidargong a aaetlun og verdi tilbuin 2029 RUV in Icelandic 2021 07 02 Retrieved 2021 07 06 The Road System 2012 PDF Icelandic Road Administration ICERA Vegagerdin May 2012 Retrieved 2013 03 30 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title List of tunnels in Iceland amp 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