Trans Global Highway

Trans Global Highway

The Trans-Global Highway is a proposed highway system that would link all continents of Earth except Australia and Antarctica. The highway would network new and existing bridges and tunnels, improving not only ground transportation but also potentially offering a conduit for utility pipelines. It was proposed by Frank X. Didik.[1]

Contents

History

In 1890 William Gilpin[disambiguation needed ] first proposed to connect the continents by land via the Cosmopolitan Railway. Significant elements of that proposal, such as the English Channel Tunnel, have been constructed since that era. However, the improvement of the global shipping industry and advent of international air travel has reduced the demand for many intercontinental land connections. Some of the missing links are connected by car ferries.

Major Components

Bering Strait bridge or tunnel

One of the major components of the proposal is to span the Bering Sea with a bridge or tunnel called the Intercontinental Peace Bridge, the TKM-World Link or the AmerAsian Peace Tunnel. This would link the Cape Prince of Wales, with the Russian Cape Dezhnev. The Bering Strait Tunnel would consist of 3 tunnels connecting Alaska and Russia by going through two islands (the Little Diomede (USA) and Big Diomede (Russia)). The longest single tunnel would be 24 miles (40 km). Since the Bering Sea at the proposed crossing has a maximum known depth of 170 feet (50 m), the tunnels might be dug with conventional tunnel boring machines of the type that was employed in the construction of the Channel Tunnel. The three tunnel proposal is considered by many[who?] to be preferable over a bridge due to severe environmental conditions, especially the inescapable winter ice damage.

Each proposed tunnel would be shorter than some current tunnels. The Channel tunnel linking England with mainland Europe is approximately 31.34 miles (50.45 km) long; the ocean tunnel Seikan linking Hokkaidō with Honshū in Japan is 33.46 miles (55.86 km) long; and the Swiss Gotthard Base Tunnel through the Alps, currently under construction, will be 35.7 miles (59.60 km) long.[1]

To make a bridge or tunnel useful, a road must be built to connect it, despite very difficult terrain and climate. In Alaska a 700 miles (1,100 km) road would be needed, and in Russia a road more than 1,200 miles (2,000 km) long must be constructed.

Japan Korea Tunnel

Japan might technically be connected with mainland Asia via five tunnels, called the "Korea Japan Friendship Tunnel System," extending from the city of Fukuoka on Kyūshū, Japan, to the port city of Pusan in Korea via four islands. The maximum ocean depth in this area is 480 feet (146 m). Similar proposals have been discussed for decades by Korean and Japanese politicians.

Hokkaidō Sakhalin Asia Tunnel

It may also be possible to connect Japan to mainland Asia by constructing two tunnels extending north from Hokkaidō to Sakhalin Island (the Sakhalin Hokkaidō Long Tunnel), which would be 25 miles (42 km) long and a second tunnel from Sakhalin to the Siberian Russian mainland (the Sakhalin Tunnel), which would only be 4.2 miles (7 km) long. Moreover, Sakhalin Island region is a major oil-producing region, and the introduction of a pipeline would add a valuable secondary means of oil transport.[1]

Gibraltar Tunnel

The Gibraltar Tunnel is proposed to be a rail tunnel linking Africa and Europe. Due to the depth of the Strait of Gibraltar (300–900 metres / 1000–2950 feet), it would be a great challenge to remove automobile exhaust from this depth. Any tunnel would most likely be an electrified rail tunnel, similar to the Channel Tunnel linking the UK and France. There have also been proposals for a bridge over the Strait.

Australia-Papua New Guinea Tunnel and Connections to Indonesia

A tunnel/bridge between the Australian mainland and the island of New Guinea is considered economically infeasible owing to the great distance. Cape York in northern Queensland is 140 km away from New Guinea. This is a very long distance compared to existing tunnels or bridges, and the demand for car travel is not so high; as of 2009[2] there are no car ferries between Australia and Papua New Guinea. Passenger travel is by air only.

There might be more demand for connecting parts of Indonesia, most importantly the heavily populated island of Java, which could be connected to the Asian mainland by a crossing to Sumatra and from there across the Strait of Malacca to Singapore and/or Malaysia.

Red Sea

A bridge spanning the Red Sea at the Bab-el-Mandeb has been proposed.[3] It would span from Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, across the strait, to Perim Island, and then to Yemen, for a total distance of around 18 miles including a suspension bridge spanning over 3 miles.

On February 22, 2008, it was revealed that a company owned by Tarek bin Laden is planning to build a bridge named Bridge of the Horns across the strait, linking Yemen with Djibouti[4] Construction was proposed to begin in 2009. Proposals have not yet been approved by the governments of Djibouti and Yemen.[5]

English Channel

There is no highway connection between Great Britain and the European mainland; only a railway connection, the Channel tunnel. A road tunnel was proposed as an alternative, but not considered viable.

Darién Gap

A notable break in the Pan-American Highway is a section of land located in the Darién Province in Panama and the Colombian border called the Darién Gap. It is an 87 kilometres (54 mi) stretch of rainforest. The gap has been crossed by adventurers on bicycle, motorcycle, all-terrain vehicle, and foot, dealing with jungle, swamp, insects, and other hazards.

Some people, groups, indigenous populations, and governments are opposed to completing the Darién portion of the highway. Reasons for opposition include protecting the rain forest, containing the spread of tropical diseases, protecting the livelihood of indigenous peoples in the area, and reducing the spread of drug trafficking and its associated violence from Colombia.

Difficulties

As with all major public works projects, funding is an issue. Large international projects such as the Bering Strait crossing, Japan–Korea Undersea Tunnel, and Strait of Gibraltar crossing require not only great engineering effort, but also tremendous diplomacy to ensure that costs and benefits would be shared equitably. Other modes of transport, by air and sea, are already available. In addition, geological study must be done to ensure that the local plate tectonics would be compatible with the proposed tunnels.

Despite the hypothetical benefits of a global transport link, there is currently no publicised reasoning that would justify the massive financial cost of such a proposal.

See also

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Highway — For other uses, see Highway (disambiguation). A German Autobahn in Lehrte …   Wikipedia

  • Trans-Asian Railway — The Trans Asian Railway (TAR) is a project to create an integrated freight railway network across Europe and Asia. The TAR is a project of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). Overview The project… …   Wikipedia

  • Alaska Highway — Infobox road highway name=Alaska Highway name notes= type= route=Alaska State Route 2 alternate name= maint= section= length km=2237 length round=0 length ref=cite web | title=FAQ Alaska Highway Facts publisher=The MILEPOST… …   Wikipedia

  • Top of the World Highway — The Top of the World Highway, 105 kilometres (66 miles) long, connects West Dawson (across the Yukon River from Dawson City) in the Yukon Territory with the Alaska, USA border, and continues for another 13 miles in Alaska, where it then joins the …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario Highway 61 — Highway 61 Route information Maintained by Ministry of Transportation of Ontario Length: 61.0 km …   Wikipedia

  • Global city — A global city (also called world city) is a city deemed to be an important node point in the global economic system. The concept comes from geography and urban studies and rests on the idea that globalization can be understood as largely created …   Wikipedia

  • Saskatchewan Highway 6 — Infobox road province=SK type=Hwy route=6 alternate name= a part of the CanAm Highway maint=Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure Transport Canada length km=516.6 length round=1 length ref= established= direction a= south direction b=north… …   Wikipedia

  • Human Highway — Infobox Film name = Human Highway image size = 133 caption = VHS Front Cover director = Bernard Shakey, Dean Stockwell producer = Elliot Rabinowitz, L.A. Johnson, Jeanne Field writer = Bernard Shakey, Jeanne Field, Dean Stockwell, Russ Tamblyn,… …   Wikipedia

  • Transpacific — is a contemporary term referring to travel over a stretch of water between the Asia Pacific region and the West Coast of United States, namely, the Pacific Ocean. For example, flights from U.S. to New Zealand via Hawaii are considered a… …   Wikipedia

  • Bering Strait bridge — The Bering Strait bridge or Bering Strait tunnel, if ever constructed, would be a bridge or tunnel spanning the Bering Strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka, Russia, and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, United States. The name The Intercontinental… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”