Tunnels in Iceland

There are currently six tunnels in the Icelandic road system; three more are under construction or have been planned (as of June 2004). Tunnels in Iceland are usually built under mountains for several different reasons such as: preventing winter-isolation of remote communities which would otherwise have to depend on high roads that often close due to snow, to shorten distance between communities and to increase road-safety by bypassing dangerous stretches of road. One Icelandic tunnel has been dug under a fjord, the Hvalfjörður Tunnel, and is among the longest underwater road tunnels in the world.

Currently open:

Name Length (meters) Year of opening Region
Vestfirðir Tunnel 9120 [1] 1995 Westfjords
Hvalfjörður Tunnel 5770 1998 West
Múlagöng Tunnel 3440 1990 North
Strákar Tunnel 800 1967 North
Oddskarð Tunnel 640 1977 East
Arnardalshamar Tunnel 30 1948 Westfjords

Under construction:

Name Length (meters) Projected opening Region
Fáskrúðsfjörður Tunnel 5650 2005 East
Almannaskarð Tunnel ~1200 2005 East
Héðinsfjörður Tunnel 10560 [2] unknown North

[1] Tunnel has three branches that connect in a T-intersection in the tunnel. [2] Actually two tunnels, 3.7 and 6.9 km long.


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