Lewin Tunnel
| Lewin Tunnel | |
|---|---|
View through the Lewin Tunnel | |
Interactive map of Lewin Tunnel | |
| Overview | |
| Other name | Galgenbergtunnel (german) |
| Line | Kłodzko Nowe–Kudowa-Zdrój railway |
| Location | between Kulin Kłodzki and Lewin Kłodzki, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland |
| Status | Active |
| Crosses | Szubieniczna Hill, Lewin Hills |
| Start | Kulin Kłodzki side |
| End | Lewin Kłodzki side |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 10 July 1905[1] |
| Owner | PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe[2] |
| Operator | PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe |
| Traffic | Railway |
| Character | Single-track tunnel |
| Technical | |
| Length | 80 m (260 ft)[3][1] |
The Lewin Tunnel (German Galgenbergtunnel) is a railway tunnel on the Kłodzko Nowe–Kudowa-Zdrój railway in south-western Poland, between Kulin Kłodzki and Lewin Kłodzki in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It passes beneath Szubieniczna Hill in the Lewin Hills and has a length of 80 m (260 ft).[3][1]
The tunnel was built as part of the final extension of the railway from Kłodzko to Kudowa-Zdrój, a mountain section that required two tunnels and the prominent viaduct at Lewin Kłodzki.[1] It remains in railway use as part of line no. 309, managed by PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe.[2]
Description
The Lewin Tunnel is located between Kulin Kłodzki and Lewin Kłodzki on the route from Kłodzko to Kudowa-Zdrój.[3][1] According to Lower Silesian tunnel surveys, it is a curved, single-track summit tunnel with a length of 80 m (260 ft).[3]
Przemysław Dominas places the structure at kilometres 38.73–38.81 of the line and states that it was driven beneath Szubieniczna Hill, which reaches 502 m (1,647 ft) above sea level.[1] The interior was faced with stone blocks, similarly to the nearby tunnel at Kulin Kłodzki.[1]
History
The tunnel was constructed during the building of the most difficult section of the railway from Kłodzko to Kudowa-Zdrój.[1] In Dominas's survey of Lower Silesian railway tunnels, the Lewin structure is dated to 1903–1904 and attributed to the builder Riebensahm and director Saliger.[1]
The railway line to Kudowa-Zdrój entered service on 10 July 1905, and the tunnel opened with that section.[1] Earlier stages of the same route had reached Szczytna in 1890 and Duszniki-Zdrój in 1902, but the mountainous terrain near Kulin Kłodzki and Lewin Kłodzki delayed completion of the final segment.[1]
In modern PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe documentation, the tunnel forms part of line no. 309, which remains part of the managed national railway infrastructure.[2]
Significance
The Lewin Tunnel is one of the historic railway engineering works of the Kłodzko Land and forms part of a scenic mountain railway that also includes the Lewin Kłodzki viaduct and the longer tunnel at Kulin Kłodzki.[1] In the overview by Wojciech Preidl, it is listed among the surviving railway tunnels of Lower Silesia and identified as the shortest of the tunnels on that regional network survey.[3]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Dominas, Przemysław (2020). "Tunele kolejowe na Dolnym Śląsku". In Przerwa, Tomasz; Keller, Dawid; Kruk, Bartosz (eds.). A jednak kolej! Historyczne i współczesne uwarunkowania rozwoju transportu (PDF) (in Polish). Wrocław: Instytut Pamięci Narodowej, Oddział we Wrocławiu. pp. 52–69. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c "Id-12 (D-29) Wykaz linii" (PDF) (in Polish). PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe S.A. 27 July 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d e Preidl, Wojciech (2005). "Dolnośląskie tunele kolejowe – zabytki techniki" (PDF). Górnictwo i Geoinżynieria (in Polish). 29 (3/1): 319–329. Retrieved 9 March 2026.