Warnow Tunnel

Last updated

Warnow Tunnel
Rostock Warnowtunnel 2008-09-13 004a.jpg
Warnow Tunnel in Rostock.
Overview
Location Rostock
StatusActive
Crosses Warnow river
Operation
Work begun1999
Opened2003
Operator Atlas Arteria
TrafficAutomotive
Technical
Length790 m
Towpathyes
Route map
Warnowtunnel Rostock Lageplan.png

The Warnow Tunnel (also known as the Warnow River Crossing and the Warnowquerung in German) is a road tunnel 790 m long which connects the east and west bank of the Warnow river in the Hanseatic city of Rostock in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.

Contents

History

It is Germany's first toll road in modern times and Germany's first privately financed transport project. The construction cost of 220 million euros was financed by Bouygues Travaux Publics (France), Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation (Australia), and 14 banks. [1] It was inaugurated on 12 September 2003 by the Federal Transport Minister Dr. Manfred Stolpe.

By 2006, the tunnel was close to bankruptcy. Only 10,500 vehicles were crossing it daily, compared to the expected 20,000. The operating concession was extended from 30 to 50 years to make it more profitable for its operator. [1]

The 50-year operating concession is held by Warnowquerung GmbH & Co. KG, which is 70% owned by the Australian investment company Atlas Arteria which operates many tolled roads worldwide. On 15 August 2018, Atlas Arteria announced an agreement to acquire the remaining 30%.

In November 2015, the fare to cross the tunnel was raised to cope with high maintenance costs. [2] By September 2020, 67 million cars had driven through the tunnel since it opened. [3]

Engineering

The tunnel was built using a technique known as immersed tube onstruction: the main part of the tunnel consists of six prefabricated concrete conduits which were formed and poured in a temporary drydock nearby, floated out into the river and lowered into a dredged channel in the river bottom. This is a technique apparently pioneered in the Detroit River in construction of the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel in 1930, and replicated for sub-aqueous tunnels ever since.

Related Research Articles

Dartford Crossing Tunnel and bridge between Kent and Essex, UK

The Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing, commonly known as the Dartford Crossing and until 1991 the Dartford Tunnel, is a major road crossing of the River Thames in England, carrying the A282 road between Dartford in Kent in the south and Thurrock in Essex in the north. It consists of two bored tunnels and the cable-stayed Queen Elizabeth II Bridge. The only fixed road crossing of the Thames east of Greater London, it is the busiest estuarial crossing in the United Kingdom, with an average daily use of over 130,000 vehicles. It opened in stages: the west tunnel in 1963, the east tunnel in 1980 and the bridge in 1991. The crossing, although not officially designated a motorway, is considered part of the M25 motorway's route, using the tunnels northbound and bridge southbound. Described as one of the most important road crossings in Britain, it suffers from heavy traffic and congestion.

Bad Doberan (district) District in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany

Bad Doberan is a former district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It was named after its largest town, Bad Doberan, the German Bad meaning spa. The district surrounded the City of Rostock, bordering the Baltic Sea in the north as well as the former districts of Nordvorpommern, Güstrow and Nordwestmecklenburg. The district was disbanded at the district reform of September 2011. Its territory has been part of the district of Rostock since.

Tyne Tunnel 2 road tunnels under the River Tyne in northern England

The Tyne Tunnel is the name given to two 2-lane vehicular toll tunnels under the River Tyne in North East England. Originally opened in 1967 and expanded in 2011, the tunnels connect the town of Jarrow on the south bank of the river with North Shields and Wallsend on the northern side. The tunnels are approximately 7 miles (11 km) downstream, to the east of Newcastle upon Tyne. The Tyne Tunnel constitutes a part of the A19 road.

Second Severn Crossing M4 motorway bridge over the Severn Estuary in the United Kingdom

The Second Severn Crossing, officially renamed the Prince of Wales Bridge since July 2018, is the M4 motorway bridge over the River Severn between England and Wales, inaugurated on 5 June 1996 by the Prince of Wales to supplement the traffic capacity of the Severn Bridge built in 1966. The bridge is operated by England's National Highways. It has a total length of 5,128 metres (16,824 ft).

Woolwich Ferry Ferry across the River Thames in east London

The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry across the River Thames in East London, connecting Woolwich on the south bank with North Woolwich on the north. It is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm of Transport for London (TfL). Around two million passengers use the ferry each year.

Warnow River in Germany

The Warnow is a river in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany. It flows into the Baltic Sea near the town of Rostock, in its borough Warnemünde.

Detroit–Windsor tunnel International tunnel between United States and Canada

The Detroit–Windsor tunnel, also known as the Detroit–Canada tunnel, is an international highway tunnel connecting the cities of Detroit, Michigan, United States and Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is the second-busiest crossing between the United States and Canada, the first being the Ambassador Bridge, which also connects the two cities, which are situated on the Detroit River.

Jack Lynch Tunnel Crossing of the River Lee in Cork

The Jack Lynch Tunnel is an immersed tube tunnel and an integral part of the N40 road network in Cork, Ireland. It is named after former Taoiseach, Jack Lynch, a native of Cork.

Downtown Tunnel Tunnel across Southern Branch Elizabeth River in Virginia

The Downtown Tunnel on Interstate 264 (I-264) and U.S. Route 460 Alternate crosses the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River in the South Hampton Roads area of Virginia, US. It links the independent City of Portsmouth with the independent City of Norfolk. In conjunction with the Berkley Bridge, the Downtown Tunnel connects to Interstate 464 to the City of Chesapeake and a continuation I-264 to the downtown and Waterside areas of Norfolk, and on to Virginia Beach. Owned by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), it is operated and maintained by Elizabeth River Crossings under a 58-year public–private partnership concession agreement. Formerly a toll-free facility, open road tolling was implemented on February 1, 2014 by VDOT to help finance repairs and expansion to the tunnel.

Midtown Tunnel (Virginia)

The Midtown Tunnel carries U.S. Highway 58 across the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River in the South Hampton Roads area of Virginia, US. It links the cities of Portsmouth and Norfolk. Owned by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), it is operated and maintained by Elizabeth River Crossings under a 58-year public–private partnership concession agreement. Formerly a toll-free facility, open road tolling was implemented on February 1, 2014 by VDOT to help finance repairs and expansion to the tunnel.

Cross-Harbour Tunnel Tunnel crossing Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong

The Cross-Harbour Tunnel is the first tunnel in Hong Kong built underwater. It consists of two steel road tunnels each with two lanes constructed using the single shell immersed tube method.

A toll road is a road over which users may travel over on payment of a toll, or fee. Tolls are a form of use tax that pays for the cost of road construction and maintenance, without raising taxes on non-users. Investor's bonds necessary for the construction of the roads are issued and sold with the expectation that the bonds will be paid back with user tolls. The toll roads may be run by government agencies that have bond issuing authority and/or private companies that sell bonds or have other sources of finance. Toll roads are usually a government guaranteed road monopoly that guarantees limited or no competing roads will be built by government agencies for the duration of the bonds. Private toll roads built with money raised from private investors in expectation of making money from the tolls probably dominated early toll roads. Government sponsored toll roads often guarantee a minimum payment to the bond holders if traffic volume and toll collections are less than predicted. If the toll authority is a private company there is often a maximum amount of fees that they may extract from users. Toll road operators are typically responsible for maintaining the roads. After the bonds are paid off the road typically reverts to the government agency that authorized the road and owns the land it was built on. Like most government taxes it is not unusual for tolls to continue to be charged after the bonds have been paid off.

A4 (Croatia) Motorway in Croatia

The A4 motorway is a motorway in Croatia spanning 97.0 kilometres (60.3 mi). It connects the nation's capital, Zagreb, to the city of Varaždin and to Budapest, Hungary via the Goričan border crossing. The motorway represents a major north–south transportation corridor in Croatia and is a part of European routes E65 and E71. The A4 motorway route also follows Pan-European corridor Vb.

Bad Kleinen–Rostock railway

The Bad Kleinen–Rostock railway is a double track electrified railway in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The Ludwigslust–Bad Kleinen section of the line is double track. The line was opened in 1850 by the Mecklenburg Railway Company and is one of the oldest railways in Germany and is part of the Leipzig–Magdeburg–Schwerin–Rostock main line.

Eurasia Tunnel Road tunnel in Istanbul, Turkey

The Eurasia Tunnel is a road tunnel in Istanbul, Turkey, crossing underneath the Bosphorus strait. The tunnel was officially opened on 20 December 2016 and opened to traffic on 22 December 2016.

Bützow station

Bützow station is in the city of Bützow in the district of Rostock in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and is served in local and long-distance services. It is on the Bad Kleinen–Rostock railway and is the starting point of the line to Szczecin.

Trams in Rostock

The Rostock tramway network is a network of tramways forming the centrepiece of the public transport system in Rostock, the largest city in the federal state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.

Warnemünde station Railway station in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany

Warnemünde station is located in the seaside resort of Warnemünde, a district of the Hanseatic city of Rostock in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The station opened on 30 September 1903 and is located on the Neustrelitz–Warnemünde railway. It is the terminus of all three Rostock S-Bahn lines. In addition, some long-distance trains serve the station. Until 1995, it was the starting point of ferries to Gedser in Denmark. The station building and some other facilities of the station have heritage protection.

Elizabeth River Crossings (ERC), officially known as Elizabeth River Crossings OpCo, LLC, is a limited liability company whose sole purpose is to finance, deliver, operate and maintain the Elizabeth River Tunnels Project in the South Hampton Roads region of Virginia. The project comprised the development, design, construction, finance and operation of a new two-lane tunnel adjacent to the existing Midtown Tunnel under the Elizabeth River, maintenance and safety improvements to the existing Midtown and Downtown tunnels, extending the Martin Luther King Freeway from London Boulevard to Interstate 264, and interchange modifications at Brambleton Avenue and Hampton Boulevard.

References

  1. 1 2 (in German) Erster deutscher Maut-Tunnel bleibt geöffnet, Spiegel.de, 15 June 2006
  2. (in German) Fahrten durch Warnowtunnel Rostock werden ab November teurer, Verkehrsrundschau.de, 26 October 2015
  3. (in German) 67-millionste Fahrt durch den Warnowtunnel, Nnn.de, 8 September 2020

Coordinates: 54°08′06″N12°05′37″E / 54.13500°N 12.09361°E / 54.13500; 12.09361