To be opened for emergency traffic by Oct-2019 end. By December 2004, the cost estimate had grown to ₹900 crore. Copyright © 2018 Overdrive - All rights reserved. Vijay Parmar is not just a renowned rally rider, but an off-road driving and riding guru too. One should come well prepared as the temperature differences, especially in the winter, may exceed 30 degrees Celsius. So in 15 minutes you may have a temperature difference of 30 degrees or more! It will reduce 46 km distance between Leh and Manali. (Image Source-ANI). [35] Questions were also raised on the impact of cutting down more than 700 trees on the ecology.[36]. To be opened for general traffic by Sep-2020. This was in September 2018, basically as part of a rescue effort, to bring back to Manali, cars that had got stuck in Keylong, due to unseasonal heavy snow. In winter this water can freeze into slippery black ice as the tunnel will act as a venturi for icy winds blowing in through the North portal. Finally, the Cabinet Committee on Security in UPA government cleared the Rohtang Tunnel Project. Leh-Manali Highway tunnel built under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas, "Atal Tunnel renamed as 'Atal Tunnel, Rohtang, "9-km-long Atal Tunnel an engineering marvel", "Atal Tunnel: How world's longest tunnel above 10,000 feet at Rohtang pass will make use of automation solutions", "Importance of Rohtang Tunnel for Lahaul & Pangi resident", "Explained: What is the strategic importance of Atal Tunnel at Rohtang? In winter, the temperature difference between one side of the tunnel and the other could be over 30 degrees! Overburden: Maximum 1,900 metres (6,230 ft), average more than 600 m (1,970 ft), Construction technique: Drill & Blast with. The new route via the tunnel brings down the total distance travelled to 71 km (44.1 mi) which can be covered in about 2 hours and 5 minutes, a reduction of around 3 to 4 hours when compared to the earlier route. As of June 2012, two years after the start of the project, 3.5 km of the tunnel digging had been completed. Rohtang Tunnel The tunnel is being built at an elevation of 10171 ft under the Rohtang Pass. Not unless another tunnel punches a hole under the Kunzum La. Economics will rule. (Image Source-NW 18). Oct 2019: 100 metres work yet to be finished. While going through the tunnel, I was thinking that since everyone will now use this route, the drive over the actual Rohtang Pass would be less of a nightmare. (8m pavement and 1m footpath on both sides), General altitude of the tunnel: 3,000–3,100 m or 9,840–10,170 ft, Designated vehicular speed: 80 km/h (50 mph). Only a little progress was made in the next one year due to heavy ingress of water at serri nullah fault zone, that required constant dewatering and slowed the digging and blasting to a crawl. A 2.25 m high and 3.6 m wide emergency tunnel is integrated in the tunnel cross-section beneath the main carriageway. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 3 October 2020. Excavation was expected to be completed in 2017, with opening in the second half of 2019. They all said the Rohtang Tunnel would be highly beneficial to them as Lahaul is cut off from the rest of the world due to heavy snowing over the Rohtang Pass in the long winter season there. Simple Tech: Intelligent Manual Transmission. Along will come associated requirements for traffic policing, garbage management and parking areas that inevitably result from an increase in traffic. But, even with the Atal Tunnel opening, it will not be possible to get into Spiti in the winter. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flags off a bus from Manali after inaugurating the Atal Tunnel. 3) What do you see as the benefits of the Atal Tunnel? But some precautions need to be taken while going through it in winter. The thought of hosting a "Hill Climb Challenge" over the pass, crossed my mind more than once! 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