In the south of Denmark, just above the Baltic Sea, a ‘game-changing’ construction project is taking place that could change the face of European tourism forever.
The Fehmarnbelt tunnel – or the Fehmarn Belt fixed link – is set to connect the Danish island of Lolland with the German island of Fehmarn, bridging a gap measuring 11.2 miles to the tune of a whopping €7,400,000,000 (£6,200,000,000).
It’ll see two lanes built for both freight and commuter traffic, as well as two railway lines, and is currently set to open in 2029.
Journey times will also be hugely slashed, as tourists wanting to travel between the likes of Hamburg in northern Germany and Copenhagen, Denmark’s capital, currently need to spend five hours on a train.
Likewise, the current journey on the ferry between the two countries is 45 minutes – and with the Fehmarnbelt tunnel in place, it’ll take just 10 minutes by car and seven minutes by rail, with speeds expected to reach 125 miles per hour.
Plus, once it’s finished, it’ll become the longest immersed road and rail tunnel in the world (immersion being the process of building large sections on land, floating them to the site and then sinking them into the seabed). Impressive, right?
Though the Channel Tunnel is longer, spanning 31.5 miles and opening back in 1994, the construction process was slightly different as it was bored in using tunnelling machines.
Now, the Fehmarnbelt tunnel is set to open a new chapter for European travel, opening up Denmark to tourism beyond Copenhagen.
‘The Fehmarnbelt tunnel will be a game-changer for tourism in Denmark and the wider Scandinavian region,’ Mads Schreiner, International Market Director at VisitDenmark, told CNN.
‘By significantly reducing travel time between Germany and Denmark, it will make our country more accessible than ever for visitors from central Europe. We expect to see a rise in self-drive tourism, weekend city breaks, and sustainable travel options such as train and cycling tourism.
‘This new connection presents incredible opportunities for destinations in Eastern Denmark, as more travellers will explore beyond Copenhagen.’
What’s more, the Danish tourism board has opened the Pilen – a 217-metre-long ramp offering views of the tunnel, where engineering enthusiasts can witness future train and vehicle traffic plunge into the structure, as well as gaze at the current construction.
Nearby, there’s also the Femern Exhibition Centre displaying information about the landmark project through models and films.
Needless to say, engineering fans are hugely excited about the project – with one thread in the r/Europe Subreddit describing it as ‘fascinating.’
‘This will bring a major reduction in travel times between Hamburg and Copenhagen,’ @antineutrondecay penned, while @ThinNeighborhood2276 labelled it ‘impressive.’
Likewise, one poll in the r/Transit thread asked users which transit project they were most excited to see finished, with @Eisenbahnenthusiast choosing none other than the Fehmarnbelt tunnel.
For @NotAPersonI0 it was the California high-speed rail, while other honourable mentions went to The Green Line extension in Minneapolis, the Eglinton Crosstown in Toronto, and the Metro Tunnel in Melbourne.
Elsewhere, imagine being able to reach New York from London in just one hour. That fever dream could one day be possible after a proposal to build a 3,000-mile trans-Atlantic train tunnel connecting the cities recently resurfaced online.
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