Travelling through the Attabad Lake tunnel
The Attabad Lake Tunnel is a series of five tunnels located near the village of Attabad in the Hunza Valley of Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan.
What’s the Attabad Lake Tunnel?
The tunnels were built to bypass a section of the Karakoram Highway that was submerged by Attabad Lake. The lake was formed in January 2010 due to a massive landslide that blocked the Hunza River, creating a natural dam and inundating parts of the highway. In September 2015, the road was replaced with the construction of this masterpiece, also known as the Pak-China Friendship Tunnels.
Is the Attabad Lake Tunnel paved?
Set high at 2,500 meters (8,202 feet) above sea level, the road through the tunnels is fully paved. The tunnel helped to restore access for tourists traveling between China and Islamabad and to maintain the vital trade and transport link between both countries. In addition to the tunnels, the project involved the construction of several bridges and new stretches of highway to restore the connectivity disrupted by the formation of the lake.
How long is the Attabad Lake Tunnel?
The newly built section is 24 km (15 mi) long and comprises two bridges, 78 culverts, and five tunnels with a total length of 7 km, constructed at a cost of $275 million. The five tunnels are approximately 7 kilometers (4.35 miles) long. The longest tunnel is about 2.5 kilometers (1.55 miles) long. The construction faced significant difficulties due to the rugged mountainous terrain, harsh weather conditions, and the need to work around the still-forming and unstable lake.
Road suggested by: jorge manuel gómez sánchez
Pic: Mister Khan