A record breaking tunnel is being built under the Baltic Sea between Denmark and Germany to streamline the travel between the two countries.
Running for 18 kilometres, the Fehmarnbelt will be the world's longest pre-fabricated road and rail tunnel.
In a remarkable engineering accomplishment, the segments of the tunnel will be placed on top of the seafloor, and then will be joined together.
Total area covered by Fehmarnbelt tunnel
The total facility spans more than 500 hectares, and includes a harbour and a factory that is manufacturing the tunnel sections, which are called "elements."
Henrik Vincentsen, chief executive of Femern, the state-owned Danish company, which is building the tunnel noted, "It's a huge facility here."
Lego-like tunnel
Unlike most underwater tunnel, which are built by digging through solid rock under the ocean floor, the Fehmarnbelt tunnel will be constructed by linking 90 individual elements in a Lego-like arrangement.
Vincentsen added, "We are breaking records with this project."
Fehmarnbelt tunnel finances
The tunnel construction has been priced at around € 7.4 billion, the scheme mostly has been financed by Denmark, with additional € 1.3 billion from the European Commission.
Construction of Fehmarnbelt tunnel is a key to strength travel links across the continent while also reducing flying.
Commuting time between Denmark to Germany
Once completed, the journey between Rødbyhavn in southern Denmark and Puttgarten in northern Germany, will take just 10 minutes by car, or seven minutes by train, replacing a 45-minute commute through ferry.
Fehmarnbelt tunnel's construction controversial history
Denmark and Germany signed an agreement to build the tunnel previously in 2008, but the scheme was delayed by opposition from ferry operators and German conservation groups concerned about the ecological impact.
However, in 2020, the legal challenges were dismissed by a federal court in Germany, which gave a go-ahead to the constructions.
Opening date of Fehmarnbelt tunnel
The Fehmarnbelt tunnel is set to open in 2029, and is estimated to witnessed more than100 trains and 12,000 cars each day.
