Mount Kop Tunnel
Situated on the Mount Kop of Pontic Mountains, it is a 6,500 m (21,300 ft)-long twin-tube tunnel. The cost of the construction is estimated to be ₺319 million.
It was built to bypass the Kop Pass at 2,409 m (7,904 ft) elevation with hairpin turns. The tunnel will also eliminate the four-month-long traffic inaccessibility during the winter months due to harsh climatic conditions by heavy snow fall, icing and fog. It will shorten the route about 6 km (3.7 mi) and reduce the travel time to one hour. The tunnel is situated at 2,050 m (6,730 ft) elevation.
The groundbreaking ceremony was held in presence of Minister of Transport, Maritime and Communication Binali Yıldırım on 23 August 2012. Excavation works progress about 20 m (66 ft) daily in each tunnel tube. Opening of the tunnel is scheduled end of 2015.Currently, 150 personnel are at work.
References
- ^ Tekin, Salih (2011-12-22). "Kop Dağı 3 bin 800 metrelik tünelle aşılacak". Hürriyet (in Turkish). Retrieved 2014-04-19.
- ^ Özonur, Nursima; Kerim Burucu (2012-12-21). "Kop Dağı tüneli 100 metre ilerledi". Radikal (in Turkish). Retrieved 2014-04-19.
- ^ Özkal, Hasan (2012-12-20). ""Kop Dağı Tüneli"nde Kazı Çalışmaları". Son dakika (in Turkish). Retrieved 2014-04-19.
- ^ "Kop Dağı Tüneli'nin temeli törenle atıldı". Zaman (in Turkish). 2012-08-23. Archived from the original on 2014-04-20. Retrieved 2014-04-19.
- ^ Bozkurt, Orhan; Levent Akpınar (2012-12-21). "Kop Tüneli'nde 24 saat mesai". Erzurum Ajans (in Turkish). Retrieved 2014-04-19.