Overview | |
---|---|
Official name | Büyük İstanbul Tüneli |
Location | Istanbul, Turkey |
Status | Under construction |
Start | Gayrettepe, Şişli, Istanbul |
End | Küçüksu, Beykoz, Istanbul |
Operation | |
Work begun | 2018 [1] |
Opened | 2028 [2] |
Owner | Ministry of Transportation, Maritime and Communication |
Traffic | Road-rail |
Technical | |
Length | 6.5 km (4.0 mi) |
The Great Istanbul Tunnel ( Turkish: Büyük İstanbul Tüneli) is an under-construction multi-use highway and railway undersea tunnel in Istanbul, Turkey to cross the Bosphorus strait. It will be the third and the longest tunnel crossing the Bosphorus strait, at a length of 6.5 km, surpassing the Eurasia Tunnel at 5.4 km and the Marmaray Tunnel at 13.5 km. [1]
The project was officially announced by Prime minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on 27 February 2015. [3] [4] The tunnel, 6.5 km (4.0 mi) in length and 18.80 m (61.7 ft) in diameter, will consist of three levels, two levels for road traffic and one level for metro lines. It will be 110 m (360 ft) under the sea level. [5] Situated between Gayrettepe on the European side and Küçüksu on the Asian side, [5] it will integrate the highways between the three airports of the city, Istanbul Atatürk Airport, Sabiha Gökçen Airport, Istanbul Airport, and the nine metro lines of the Istanbul Metro. [4] The cost of the project will amount to US$3.5 billion. The financing of the construction will be on the build–operate–transfer basis. [6]
The RV Fugro Scout, a Singapore-flagged research/survey vessel of 83 m (272 ft) length and 20 m (66 ft) beam, [7] started soil survey works in Bosphorus on 28 July 2017 in order to determine the exact tunnel route. [8] Construction began in 2018, and was expected to be completed by 2023. [1] Due to some issues in land acquisition, the project is now expected to be completed by 2028. [2]