Severomuysky Tunnel

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The Severomuysky Tunnel (Template:Langx) is a railroad tunnel on the Baikal Amur Mainline (BAM), in northwestern Buryatia, Russia. It is named after the Northern Muya Range it cuts through. The tunnel is Script error: No such module "convert". long, the longest in Russia (excluding metro lines).[1]

Geography

The tunnel cuts under the Severomuysky Range, a mountain ridge separating the Upper Angara basin to the north west from the Muya basin to the south east. The BAM then follows the valley of the Template:Ill on its way east towards its junction with the Muya shortly before Taksimo. A works town named after the tunnel was built at each end during its construction; Tonnelny at the western portal and Severomuysk at the eastern portal. Tonnelny was abandoned in 2004 after the opening of the tunnel and its population relocated to Severomuysk. Employment in Severomuysk relies almost entirely on the maintenance of the tunnel and Template:Ill.

History

File:Severomuysky tunnel osm.png
Map of the Severomuysky Tunnel, showing (A) first bypass (1982-83) and (B) second bypass (1989)

Preliminary work on the tunnel started in 1975, with tunneling commencing on 28 May 1977. The tunnel was built through very difficult rock with four major faults and a great deal of underground water, some at Script error: No such module "convert". pressure. One method used was to pump liquid nitrogen into the rock, freezing the water until the cut could be sealed. In September 1979 workers broke into a fault connected to a Script error: No such module "convert". underground lake. This required building a drainage tunnel and delayed work for 18 months.

When it became clear that the tunnel would not be completed in time for the planned official opening of the BAM in 1984, a Script error: No such module "convert". bypass was built during the years 1982–83. This had a 4% grade and traffic was limited to Script error: No such module "convert".. Passenger traffic was prohibited.

In 1989, a new bypass of Script error: No such module "convert". was completed (with a 2% ruling grade) and the original bypass route was closed. The two bypasses crossed near the Pereval Station; the new bypass route has lengthy extra loops at both ends of its route to enable its construction with reduced gradient. Once the new bypass was opened, the older one (used mainly for transporting goods required for construction) was dismantled and now almost nothing remains of it.[2] From 1989, the new route was open for passenger trains, although it required auxiliary engines to push trains up steep sections and was limited to a maximum speed of Script error: No such module "convert"., the Script error: No such module "convert". route taking around 2<templatestyles src="Fraction/styles.css" />1⁄2 hours to cross. This section features a large number of tight curves and viaducts, with the long curved bridge built near the tunnel's western portal being nicknamed locally the Devil's Bridge (Chortov Most Script error: No such module "Coordinates".). It also includes two tunnels of its own, one of which is Script error: No such module "convert". in length. It is expensive to maintain and is at risk from avalanches.

The main tunnel was put into operation on 5 December 2003[3] (signed off on 30 November),[4][5] with yet another announcement of the completion of the BAM project.

During the Russo-Ukrainian War, on 30 November 2023, Ukrainian media reported that four explosive devices exploded in the tunnel during the movement of a freight train composed of 41 tank cars carrying diesel fuel plus three cars carrying aviation fuel.[6] A fire in the tunnel was also reported by Russian media. The Security Service of Ukraine claimed to be behind the incident.[7] With the tunnel out of commission, Russia redirected traffic to the bypass. The next day (1 December), the Security Service of Ukraine claimed to have caused a train with fuel cars to explode while crossing the Devil's Bridge on the 1989 bypass.[8] The tunnel was reopened on 2 December.[9]

Current status

With the opening of the tunnel, the time required for a train to cross the section reduced to only 15 minutes. However, the newer bypass is still used for westbound trains and local trains to allow eastbound trains to pass through the single-track tunnel. The opening of the tunnel also allowed Script error: No such module "convert". of freight annually to be switched onto the BAM from the Trans-Siberian Railway.[10]

Future

The cost of doubling the tunnel to increase the capacity from 16 to 34 train pairs per day and from Script error: No such module "convert". per year, with intervals between trains of not more than 10 minutes, was budgeted at 260.79 billion rubles (US$Template:To USD billion), according to a 2018 feasibility study by the Institute for Economy and Transport Development. Building a second tunnel was estimated to take approximately ten years.[11] Construction of the Second Severomuysky Tunnel was expected to start in 2019.[12] A study published in the International Scientific Siberian Transport Forum TransSiberia - 2021, explains the need for a second tunnel. The study has maps depicting the railway network in the region.[13]

Gallery

See also

References

  1. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". Archived Template:Webarchive
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". Template:Webarchive
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". Template:Webarchive
  6. ↑ Ukraine behind train fire in eastern Russia, source claims, CNN, 30 November 2023.
  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Baikal - Amur Main Line description on website of the Russian Railways
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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