Starting in December, passengers can hop aboard a train in Switzerland and travel through the world’s longest and deepest tunnel. The Gotthard Base Tunnel passes through the Alps, a mountain range in Europe. The tunnel is carved through rock 1.4 miles below a mountain peak and is 35.5 miles long. That’s 21 times as long as California’s Golden Gate Bridge!
It took 17 years and more than 2,600 people to build the tunnel. They faced many challenges. They had to deal with high temperatures and pressures and a risk of the tunnel flooding. But workers managed to complete the $12 billion tunnel on schedule.
The new tunnel will help reduce pollution and traffic jams in the Alps. People and goods will also have a quicker journey between northern and southern Europe, since they no longer have to rely on winding mountain roads. All aboard!