The Chinese State Railway Company has unveiled a new complex for the construction of the world’s longest underwater railway tunnel. The platform is made in the “dragon” style – this mythical animal appears in many works of Chinese folklore.
The complex is called Dinghai, and its bright coloring resembles a dragon. It is planned that the device will be used to drill Jintang, a 16-kilometer-long underwater railway tunnel located at a depth of 77 meters.
According to Chinese state media, Jintang will become the world’s second longest underwater high-speed rail tunnel after Ningbo-Zhou, but that status could also be achieved by Seikan, another high-speed rail tunnel that includes a 23 km underwater section under the Tsugaru Strait, but the speed of travel it will be limited to 160 km/h.
The Channel Tunnel, connecting England and France, stretches for 37 km, but even here the rules stipulate a speed of no more than 160 km/h. In contrast to them, the Jintang Tunnel is part of the larger Ningbo-Zhou railway, 75 km long, and the speed along it can reach 250 km/h.
Therefore, Ningbo-Zhou will become the world’s longest underwater high-speed railway tunnel. After its construction, China will establish communication between the large island of Zhoushan and the eastern coast of the country.
