Rastatt Tunnel
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Line | Karlsruhe–Basel high-speed railway |
| Location | Rastatt, Germany |
| Coordinates | North portal: 48°52′22″N 8°14′9″E / 48.87278°N 8.23583°E South portal: 48°50′39″N 8°12′52″E / 48.84417°N 8.21444°E |
| Start | Ötigheim |
| End | Niederbühl |
| Operation | |
| Work begun | May 2016 |
| Opened | 2022 (planned) |
| Owner | Deutsche Bahn |
| Character | 2 bores |
| Technical | |
| Design engineer | DB ProjektBau |
| Length | 4,270 m (14,010 ft) |
| No. of tracks | 2 |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
| Electrified | 15 kV/16.7 Hz AC overhead catenary |
| Operating speed | 250 km/h (160 mph) (max) |
The Rastatt Tunnel is a railway tunnel that is currently under construction on the Karlsruhe–Basel high speed line under Rastatt in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. Construction began in 2013 and it is expected to open in 2022.
The building is to be used by long-distance passenger services and freight.
The 4,270-metre-tunnel (2.7 mi) will pass under the whole Rastatt urban area, the existing Rhine Valley Railway and the Federbach flats. It is the largest tunnel in terms of cross-section to be built on the high-speed line and begins east of Ötigheim and ends at Niederbühl. The distance between the track-centres of the two single-track tunnels is 26.5 metres and they are linked at 500 metre intervals by cross passages. To the north and south are trough structures with a length of 800 or 895 m connecting to the rail tracks on the surface.
The gradient descends from both portals towards the centre of the tunnel. The two tracks are largely in circular tunnels with an inner radius of 4.80 metres (15.7 ft) in sections with an open design a rectangular cross-section has been chosen with an equivalent cross-sectional area.
The planned cover of the tunnels is between 3 to 20 metres (10 to 65 ft). The tunnels will run through sandy-gritty subsoil, mostly under the water table.
The tunnel is the centerpiece of a 17-kilometre-long (11 mi) section of new line, which is designed for operations at 250 km/h. The long-distance passenger services and part of the rail freight traffic passing through the corridor are expected to use it.
From 1970 to 1983, more than 20 aboveground options for section 1, to which the tunnel belongs, were considered. Under planning procedures introduced in 1983, five main above or underground options in the area Rastatt with different design speeds were examined. In its spatial planning assessment, the administration of the Karlsruhe region called on Deutsche Bundesbahn to discard the aboveground options and to provide for a tunnel under Rastatt. The initially planned route of the new line through Durmersheim, Bietigheim and Ötigheim was fought intensely by local residents. Under political pressure, the new route was eventually moved to follow the already planned deviation of federal highway 36. According to Deutsche Bahn (DB), this transfer was possible at no additional cost, taking into account the need to resolve local issues if the previously considered route was chosen. According to DB, the selected tunnel solution is more economical, has greater capacity, would allow more efficient operations and would allow shorter journey times. As a result, the regional planning process was launched in July 1986 with the proposed route following the proposed new federal highway closely and then passing through a tunnel. In the middle of 1987, Deutsche Bundesbahn intended to initiate the planning approval process in late 1987. The B36 bypass was built between 2002 and 2004.
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