Tunnel between Helsinki and Tallinn

According to the results of preliminary studies, the length of the tunnel between Helsinki and Tallinn , depending on the choice of route, should be at least 60–80 km, of which 50–70 km will go under water. The tunnel will have to pass in places at a depth of 200 meters, depending on the underlying rock. According to the authors of the study, the maintenance of the tunnel requires the construction of an artificial island of 6 hectares, on which wind generators should be placed to provide power to the tunnel. Railways in Finland and Estonia use a 1520 mm gauge , but it is planned to make 1435 mm gauge in the tunnel so that it is aligned with the Rail Baltica railway. The estimated construction period of the tunnel is 5-7 years ^[2] .

According to the latest plans published in March 2019, two tunnels will be built between Tallinn and Helsinki - for freight and for passenger trains. About halfway through the Gulf of Finland, it is planned to fill an artificial island in the shape of a five-petal flower, where buildings and marinas will be located. Together with the tunnel, infrastructure complexes will be built on the shores of the bay in Estonia and Finland. The travel time of a high-speed train through the tunnel will be reduced to 20-30 minutes, compared with one and a half to three hours by sea ^[3] . The payback period of the project is 17 years, provided that the cost of a round trip will be at least 100 euros .

The weak point of the project is the lack of reasonable forecasts for the medium term regarding cargo flows . In 2013, the Helsinki Mayor believed that the tunnel would only make sense as an integral part of the future modernized Rail Baltica freight rail link between Helsinki, Tallinn and Berlin.

Tunnel Route Direction Options

The tunnel project from the very beginning has two alternative directions: Grass - Tallinn or Masala - Porkkala ^{[to clarify ]} .

The Grass-Tallinn highway project has a length of 105 kilometers, of which 83 kilometers fall on the tunnel itself. The length of the tunnel under the seabed will be 66 kilometers.

The Masala - Porkkala highway project has a length of 120 km, of which the tunnel itself is 67 km. In this embodiment, the route should run from Porkkala Masala Station. The length of the tunnel under the seabed will be 50 kilometers.

In both cases, the route projects suggest that the tunnel will surface in Estonian Rohuneeme, after which the railway will follow through Maardu and go directly through the center of Tallinn.

At international forums, the project of this tunnel was most intensively promoted by the mayors of Tallinn Edgar Savisaar and Helsinki Jussi Payunen . On March 28, 2008, the mayors of two capitals signed a protocol of intent. Both cities proposed to allocate 100 thousand euros for preliminary studies ^[4] , although the profile ministers of these countries refused to provide any funding. The project initiators planned to submit an application to the EU for financing a feasibility study for a project worth 500-800 thousand euros. On January 13, 2009, an application was submitted to the EU, but a refusal was received to finance this project.

In 2015, Sweco, a Swedish consulting firm, prepared a preliminary feasibility study. For 2016—2017. EUR 1.3 million was allocated to continue the study (¾ of which was received under the EU Interreg Central Baltic program) ^[5] .

In 2016, Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid, at a meeting with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, expressed interest in implementing the project ^[6] .

On August 31, 2017, Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas in Los Angeles entered into an agreement of intent with representatives of Hyperloop One to collaborate on a tunnel project ^[7] .

On November 25, 2017, a protocol was signed in Finland on the intention to build a tunnel (the ideologist of the tunnel construction is Finnish businessman Peter Westerbaka). The estimated completion date is December 24, 2024 ^[8] .

In March 2019, it became known that up to 15 billion euros is planned to invest in the construction of the tunnel by the Chinese fund Touchstone Capital Partners in the framework of the project “ One belt - one way ” with an estimated deadline for the start of movement at the end of 2024 ^[3] . At the end of July, the Estonian authorities once again rejected the engineering application of the contractor Finest Bay Area - in their opinion, it is not clear from the Finnish company’s project whether the underwater trunk will pay off and what form of ownership it will be. ^[9]

The construction of the Eurotunnel between France and the UK with a length of 51 km (underwater part 39 km), opened in 1994 , cost the project investors £ 4.6 billion and took 6 years.

The longest tunnel in the world at present is the Seikan railway tunnel in Japan with a length of 53.85 km (underwater part 23 km). It opened in 1988 and cost $ 3.6 billion. Like the Tunnel through the English Channel, he has to fight for profitability in a competitive environment with cheap air and ferry services.

• List of the longest tunnels in the world

• Schemes of prospective tunnel routes and the bottom topography of the Gulf of Finland in the area of ​​the proposed construction of the tunnel
• “Helsingin ja Tallinn Tallinn junatunnelille ei tipu EU-rahaa” // Helsingin Sanomat , 12.1.2009 (Fin.)
• Baltic infrastructure projects fail without “Soviet invaders” // rubaltic.ru, August 1, 2019
• The tunnel between Tallinn and Helsinki faces the fate of Rail Baltica ] // August 6, 2019