Severomuysky Tunnel, Railway tunnel in Muysky District, Russia.
The Severomuysky Tunnel is a railway tunnel running nearly 15 kilometers through the Northern Muya Range in Buryatia and connecting sections of the Baikal-Amur Mainline. It cuts through complex rock layers in a mountain area where few other passage options exist.
Construction began in 1977 and lasted 26 years as workers faced underground lakes and complex geology. These major obstacles required changes to construction methods and extended the original timeline.
The construction project created two settlements at the tunnel's portals: Tonnelny on the west side and Severomuysk on the east. These communities developed around the railway infrastructure and remain tied to its operation today.
Trains take about 15 minutes to pass through the tunnel as part of regular freight operations. The tunnel itself is not open to visitors, but the portal entrances at the two nearby settlements can be viewed from the outside.
Engineers discovered a large underground lake during construction that caused an 18-month delay in the project. To work around this surprise obstacle, temporary bypass routes had to be created while the problem was solved.
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