Bulgaria to get Europe’s longest road tunnel

The longest road tunnel in Europe will be built along the new 65 kilometre stretch of the Struma highway in Bulgaria. Two tunnels, totalling almost 37 kilometres, will be built underneath the Kresna gorge between the towns of Blagoevgrad and Sandanski. The 150 kilometre Struma highway runs from the village of Daskalovo to the Greek border and is part of the Pan-European Transport Corridor IV and the Trans-European North-South Highway. The tunnels are required for environmental reasons and will be
March 13, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
The longest road tunnel in Europe will be built along the new 65 kilometre stretch of the Struma highway in Bulgaria.  Two tunnels, totalling almost 37 kilometres, will be built underneath the Kresna gorge between the towns of Blagoevgrad and Sandanski.  

The 150 kilometre Struma highway runs from the village of Daskalovo to the Greek border and is part of the Pan-European Transport Corridor IV and the Trans-European North-South Highway.

The tunnels are required for environmental reasons and will be dug 30 metres underground. The projected cost is US$1.3 billion.

“This is the longest tunnel facility in Europe and the second longest in the world,” said minister of Regional Development Desislava Terzieva.  She also said that tenders for the construction will be issued by the middle of this year and will continue through 2014, and the Struma highway will be toll free.   

The project also includes three helipads suitable for emergency evacuation, a control centre for servicing the two tunnels and the highway with winter maintenance equipment, ambulances, fire apparatus and surveillance cameras.
Detection, Monitoring & Machine Vision Urban Traffic Control

Related Content

  • Airborne traffic monitoring - the future?
    March 1, 2013
    A new frontier in the quest to monitor road traffic is opening up… but using airborne drones to reduce the jams comes with some thorny issues. Chris Tindall reports. Imagine if you could rely on a system that provided all the data you needed to regulate traffic flow, route vehicles and respond swiftly to emergencies for a fraction of the cost of piloting a helicopter. That system exists, but as engineers and traffic managers start to explore the potential of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) – more commonly k
    Read More
  • Magway delivers future of transport
    January 18, 2021
    A dramatic shift towards e-commerce and home working, plus the need for sustainable deliveries, means future cities are at a crossroads, says Phill Davies of Magway
    Read More
  • Wi-Fi win-win for mass transit
    October 31, 2014
    David Crawford explores passenger and operator benefits of on-board Wi-Fi Urban commuters’ growing demand for continuous – and reliable - internet connectivity is spurring network operators into the rapid installation of high-grade Wi-Fi access on their surface and underground networks, as well as in their stations. Such moves are often a key part of strategies to maintain and increase ridership levels.
    Read More
  • Traffic signal priority initiatives aid better bus travel
    March 15, 2012
    David Crawford investigates traffic signal priority initiatives developing for better bus travel on the US Pacific Coast Transit patronage rises by an average of 35% along commuter corridors equipped with bus rapid transit (BRT) systems, according to the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA). BRT as defined as bus transit enhanced with ITS systems for better services, is winning new passengers attracted by opportunity to avoid increasing fuel costs and traffic congestion.
    Read More

Highlighted Content