India's Longest Road Tunnel On Jammu-Srinagar NH, Will Be Accessible From July 2016

News & Image Source : Economictimes

• IL&FS Transportation Networks Ltd (ITNL) ambitious Chenani Nashri Tunnel project in Jammu & Kashmir will be opened for traffic in July 2016. The tunnel would not only reduce the distance between two cities by 30 kms but also bring down the travel time by 2 hours.

• The 9.2 km tunnel is part of 286 km-long four-laning project of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway.Regular traffic jams on National Highway- 1A due to snowfall and avalanche have been a cause of worry for the commuters.

• The work started on this tunnel on May 23, 2011 at a stipulated budget of 2500 crores. In the recent blast ceremony, National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) engineers drilled a hole through the final section of the tunnel between Chenani & Nashri.

• Above all, NHAI is also constructing a parallel tunnel along with main tunnel which will allow the commuters to escape in case of contingency. The two tubes of the tunnel will be internally connected through 29′ cross passages ( each after a gap of 300 meters) and the escape tunnel will be used for pedestrians. There is a provision for ventilation keeping in view the distance of the tunnel.
• Keeping in mind the traffic problems or a specific breakdown of the vehicles, parking spots will also find their way. The four-lane project would go a long way in creating an all-weather road to the Kashmir valley.