Gdańsk Tunnel
| Gdańsk Tunnel | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Other name | Tunel kolejowo-drogowy w Gdańsku |
| Location | Gdańsk, Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland |
| Status | Active |
| Start | Hucisko / Gdańsk Główny side |
| End | Okopowa / Gdańsk Śródmieście side |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 2 June 2018 |
| Owner | City of Gdańsk |
| Traffic | Road and railway |
| Character | Cut-and-cover rail-and-road tunnel |
| Technical | |
| Length | 400 m (1,300 ft)[1] |
The Gdańsk Tunnel is a rail-and-road tunnel in the Śródmieście district of Gdańsk, Poland. It was built as part of the redevelopment connected with Forum Gdańsk and the construction of the new Nowe Podwale Grodzkie route. The structure is unusual in Poland in combining road traffic with railway traffic in one covered urban corridor.[2][1]
The tunnel links the area near Gdańsk Główny with the area of Gdańsk Śródmieście, allowing road traffic to bypass Hucisko while maintaining railway access in the same covered alignment.[3][4]
Description
The tunnel forms part of the Nowe Podwale Grodzkie urban route in central Gdańsk. According to the Encyklopedia Gdańska, it is 600 m (2,000 ft) long and runs from Hucisko to Okopowa Street near the SKM stop at Gdańsk Śródmieście.[2] A 2024 overview of tunnels in Poland published in Przegląd Geologiczny lists the rail-and-road tunnel in Gdańsk with a length of 400 m (1,300 ft).[1] City of Gdańsk materials describing the whole Nowe Podwale Grodzkie route state that the road corridor, together with the tunnel section, is about 1.5 km (0.93 mi) long.[5][3]
The tunnel carries a single carriageway road with one lane in each direction and includes two delivery zones for the Forum Gdańsk complex.[2][5] It is equipped with safety systems, evacuation routes and connections to the city's TRISTAR traffic-management system.[2][4]
The covered structure also incorporates railway traffic leading towards Gdańsk Śródmieście, which is why specialist Polish literature classifies it as a railway tunnel as well as a road tunnel.[1]
History
The tunnel was constructed as part of the large-scale redevelopment of central Gdańsk connected with the Forum Gdańsk project and the reorganisation of the road system around the former railway cutting.[6][4]
Construction began in 2016.[2] The tunnel and the new road were opened to traffic on 2 June 2018.[2][5] City authorities presented the investment as a way to divert traffic away from the Hucisko junction and to improve access through the city centre.[3]
In August 2019 a vehicle fire in the tunnel caused damage and led to its temporary closure. It was reopened to traffic in December 2019 after repairs.[7]
Operation
The tunnel serves both local road traffic and railway movements in the central Gdańsk corridor. On the road level, it enables vehicles to bypass the Hucisko intersection and part of the surface street network in the historic centre.[5] On the rail side, it forms part of the approach towards the Gdańsk Śródmieście area.[1]
The road section is subject to a speed limit of 30 km/h.[5][4]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e Kowalczyk, Szymon; Cabalski, Krzysztof; Radzikowski, Michał (2024). "Rozpoznawanie warunków geologiczno-inżynierskich projektowanych obiektów tunelowych – rozważania nad podejściem dokumentacyjnym". Przegląd Geologiczny (in Polish). 72 (12/2): 799–805. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f Śliwiński, Błażej. "TUNEL W CIĄGU UL. NOWE PODWALE GRODZKIE" (in Polish). Encyklopedia Gdańska. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c "Nowe Podwale Grodzkie – od soboty dostępne dla kierowców!" (in Polish). City of Gdańsk. 1 June 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d "Schodzimy pod Forum Gdańsk na... Nowe Podwale Grodzkie" (in Polish). City of Gdańsk. 23 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d e "Tunelem przez Śródmieście: Nowe Podwale Grodzkie już dla kierowców" (in Polish). City of Gdańsk. 2 June 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ "GDAŃSKI PROJEKT KOMUNIKACJI MIEJSKIEJ" (in Polish). Encyklopedia Gdańska. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ "Od wtorku tunel pod Forum Gdańsk wreszcie otwarty". Gazeta Wyborcza Trójmiasto (in Polish). 23 December 2019. Retrieved 9 March 2026.