The Hvalbiartunnilin () is the name applied to two tunnels on the island of

Suðuroy Suðuroy (pronounced: �suːwʊrɔior �suːri ‘South Island’, ) is the southernmost of the Faroe Islands. The island covers 163.7 square kilometres (63.2 sq mi). In 2018 the population was 4,601. Suðuroy region ( sýsla) comprise ...

, the most southerly of the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...

. The original Hvalbiartunnilin is the oldest tunnel in the country, while the new Hvalbiartunnilin opened in 2021. Both tunnels connect the villages of

Hvalba Hvalba () is a village and a municipality in the Faroe Islands, which consists of Hvalba, Nes-Hvalba and Sandvík. The village spreads around the bottom of a deep inlet, Hvalbiarfjørður, in the northeast of Suðuroy. Population Hvalba is one o ...

and

Trongisvágur Trongisvágur () is a village on the island of Suduroy in the Faroe Islands. Trongisvágur is the village in the bottom of Trongisvágsfjørður ( fjord) on the east coast of Suduroy. Trongisvágur and the neighbouring villages of Tvøroyri an ...

. The tunnels are owned and maintained by the public works authority Landsverk.

History

In the centuries before the tunnel arrived, Hvalba and Trongisvágur were connected by a footpath via the Krákugjógv. Construction of the Hvalbiartunnilin started in 1961, and it opened in 1963 as the first tunnel in the country. It closed on 8 May 2021 with the opening of the new tunnel. The old tunnel was an unlit, one-lane tunnel measuring in length. Because of its limited clearance of , it could not handle modern-sized large vehicles, which typically measure , including lorries, trailers and touring cars. This impeded transport to the rest of the country. Northbound traffic had to yield to southbound traffic in passing places, slowing transit and reducing road safety. In 2017, it was decided to replace the old tunnel with a new tunnel. This tunnel, with two lanes and a clearance of , measures in length. Boring started on 27 June 2019 and finished on 7 July 2020. A new access road of was constructed on the Hvalba side and on the Trongisvágur side. The tunnel is built by ArtiCon and LNS. It cost 272 million DKK. The tunnel opened on 8 May 2021 with a ceremony, oldtimers and a convoy of lorries that previously could not access Hvalba. The old tunnel will be repurposed and is, as of December 2023, fenced off for traffic. The new Hvalbiartunnilin would gain additional importance if the subsea

Suðuroyartunnilin Suðuroyartunnilin (the Suðuroy Tunnel) is a planned undersea tunnel in the Faroe Islands, linking the island of Suðuroy to Sandoy. As of 2024, all vehicles and cargo, and virtually all passenger traffic must use the ferry service. Current sit ...

is constructed between

Sandvík Sandvík (pronounced , "Sandy Bay"; ) is the northernmost village of the island of Suðuroy in the Faroe Islands. It is situated on the northern side of a shallow fjord. The village was previously known as Hvalvík (''Bay of Whales''). It changed ...

on Suðuroy and the island of

Sandoy Sandoy ("Sand Island") is the first of the five southern islands that make up the Faroe chain, the fifth biggest of all the Faroe Islands, an autonomous region of the Kingdom of Denmark. It also refers to the Regions of the Faroe Islands, region ...

. This tunnel has yet to be decided upon, but according to plans, it should open around 2030. Sandoy is connected to the capital

Tórshavn Tórshavn (; ; Danish language, Danish: ''Thorshavn''), usually locally referred to as simply Havn, is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of th ...

and the rest of the country via the

Sandoyartunnilin Sandoyartunnilin () is an undersea tunnel, road tunnel in the Faroe Islands. It connects the main island of Streymoy with Sandoy to the south. The length of the tunnel is , and the estimated cost is 860 million Danish krone, DKK. The tunnel ope ...

. The footpath between Hvalba and Trongisvágur is a popular hiking route.

References

{{reflist Tunnels in the Faroe Islands Tunnels completed in 1961

History

See also

References