Białą Górą Tunnel
| Białą Górą Tunnel | |
|---|---|
Eastern portal of the tunnel complex | |
Interactive map of Białą Górą Tunnel | |
| Overview | |
| Other name | Kozłowski Tunnel |
| Line | Warszawa Zachodnia–Kraków Główny railway |
| Location | near Tunel and Kozłów, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland |
| Status | Active[1] |
| Crosses | Biała Góra |
| Start | Tunel side |
| End | Kozłów side |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 25 January 1885 (first bore)[1] |
| Owner | PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe |
| Operator | PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe |
| Traffic | Railway |
| Character | Two parallel single-track bores |
| Technical | |
| Length | 764 m (2,507 ft)[1][2] |
The Białą Górą Tunnel (Tunel pod Białą Górą), also known as the Kozłowski Tunnel, is a railway tunnel complex in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship of southern Poland. It carries the Warszawa Zachodnia–Kraków Główny railway beneath Biała Góra near the village of Tunel, between Miechów and Kozłów.[1]
The complex consists of two parallel single-track bores, each 764 m (2,507 ft) long.[1][2] It is one of the longest historic railway tunnels in Poland and the longest on line no. 8.[2]
Description
The tunnel lies at km 266.617–267.381 of railway line no. 8, the main railway route linking Warsaw and Kraków.[1] Atlas Kolejowy describes the structure as two electrified single-track bores in regular use.[1]
The tunnel passes beneath Biała Góra, a chalk hill rising to about 415–416 m above sea level in the northern part of Lesser Poland.[3][4] The locality of Tunel takes its name from the railway tunnel.[3]
Atlas Kolejowy notes, “for the record”, that the two bores are named August for track no. 1 and Włodzimierz for track no. 2.[1]
History
The first tunnel bore was built as part of the Ivangorod–Dąbrowa Railway, the strategic railway linking the Russian partition with the Dąbrowa Basin and the Austrian frontier.[1][4] Atlas Kolejowy gives the opening date of the original bore as 25 January 1885.[1]
A local historical brochure issued for the “W lasach tunelskich” trail states that a second, parallel bore was constructed in 1910–1912 as traffic increased on the line.[5]
The same brochure notes that the tunnels were built for strategic reasons, since disabling them would interrupt rail communication toward Upper Silesia.[5] During the First World War and again in 1945, the tunnel complex suffered wartime damage, after which it was rebuilt and returned to use.[5][4]
In recent decades the tunnel has remained an important element of the heavily used north–south railway corridor on line no. 8.[1] In planning documents and regional policy debates, proposals have periodically appeared for a new alignment between Miechów, Charsznica and Kozłów that would bypass the tunnel in order to increase line capacity.[6][7]
Significance
The Białą Górą Tunnel is one of the most recognizable railway structures in the Miechów area.[3] A 2024 geological review of Polish transport tunnels lists it among the notable railway tunnels of the country and gives its length as 764 m (2,507 ft).[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Kozłowski (tunel)" (in Polish). Atlas Kolejowy Europy Środkowej. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d Kowalczyk, Stanisław; Rzeźnik, Paweł; Kulikowski, Dawid; Porzucek, Sebastian; Karczewski, Jarosław (2024). "Rozpoznawanie warunków geologiczno-inżynierskich tuneli komunikacyjnych z zastosowaniem geofizyki inżynierskiej – przykłady z Polski". Przegląd Geologiczny (in Polish). 72 (12/2): 799–808. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c "Tunel" (in Polish). Polskie Towarzystwo Turystyczno-Krajoznawcze, Oddział w Miechowie. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c "PKP Kozłów. 2025". Polrails. 30 September 2025. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c "W lasach tunelskich" (PDF) (in Polish). Koło Grodzkie PTTK w Krakowie. 30 September 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ "Decyzja środowiskowa dla linii kolejowej Kraków-Psary" (in Polish). Rynek Kolejowy. 19 February 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ "Apel Sejmiku Województwa Małopolskiego w sprawie pilnej realizacji kluczowych inwestycji kolejowych w województwie małopolskim" (in Polish). Urząd Marszałkowski Województwa Małopolskiego. 29 September 2025. Retrieved 9 March 2026.