History of tunnels

The oldest used rail tunnel in the world was built in 1836. Only a short section of it remains now in Liverpool.

The World's oldest underwater tunnel is said to be the Terelek kaya tüneli under Kızıl River, a little south of the towns of Boyabat and Duragan in Turkey. It was built more than 2000 years ago (possibly 5000) and possibly had a defensive purpose.

The examples of other historical tunnels are as follows:

• The ‘qanat’ or ‘kareez’ of Persia is a water management system used to provide a reliable supply of water to human settlements or for irrigation in hot, arid and semi-arid climates. The oldest and largest known system is in the Iranian city of Gonabad, which after 2700 years, still provides drinking and agricultural water to nearly 40,000 people. Its depth is more than 360 m (1,180 ft), and its length is 45 km (28 mi).
• The Eupalinian aqueduct on the island of Samos (North Aegean, Greece). Built in 520 BC by the ancient Greek engineer Eupalinos of Megara. Eupalinos organised the work so that the tunnel construction began from both sides of mount Kastro. The two teams advanced simultaneously (= at one and the same time) and met in the middle with excellent accuracy, something that was extremely difficult in that time. The aqueduct was of defensive importance, since it ran underground, and it was not easily found by an enemy who could otherwise cut off the water supply to Pythagoreion, the ancient capital of Samos. The tunnel's existence was recorded by Herodotus (as was the mole and harbour, and the third wonder of the island, the great temple to Hera, thought by many to be the largest in the Greek world). The precise location of the tunnel was only re-established in the 19th century by German archaeologists. The tunnel is 1,030 m long (3,380 ft) and visitors can still enter it.
• Sapperton Canal Tunnel on the Thames and Severn Canal in England was dug through hills, and was opened in 1789. It was 3.5 km (2.2 mi) long and allowed boat transport of coal and other goods. Above it runs the Sapperton Long Tunnel which carries the "Golden Valley" railway line between Swindon and Gloucester.
• The 1796 Stoddart Tunnel in Chapel-en-le-Frith in Derbyshire is reputed to be the oldest rail tunnel in the world. Rail wagons were horse-drawn at that time.
• The tunnel was created for the first true steam locomotive, from Penydarren to Abercynon. The Penydarren locomotive was built by Richard Trevithick. The locomotive made the historic journey from Penydarren to Abercynon in 1804. Part of this tunnel can still be seen at Pentrebach, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. This is the oldest railway tunnel in the world, for self-propelled steam engines on rails.
• The Montgomery Bell Tunnel in Tennessee was a 290-foot (88-metre) long, high water diversion tunnel, 15-×-8 ft high (4.6-×-2.4 m), to power a water wheel. It was built by slave labour in 1819, being the first full-scale tunnel in North America.
• Crown Street Station, Liverpool, 1829. It was built by George Stephenson. It was a single track tunnel 291 yd long (266 m). It was bored from Edge Hill to Crown Street to serve the world's first passenger railway station. The station was abandoned in 1836 being too far from Liverpool city centre, with the area converted for freight use. Closed down in 1972, the tunnel is disused. However it is the oldest rail tunnel running under streets in the world.
• The 1.26 mile (2.03 km) 1829 Wapping Tunnel in Liverpool, England, was the first rail tunnel bored under a metropolis. Currently it has been disused since 1972. Having two tracks, the tunnel runs from Edge Hill in the east of the city to the south end. The tunnel is still in excellent condition and is being considered for reuse by Merseyrail rapid transit rail system, with maybe an underground station cut into the tunnel. The river portal is opposite the new Liverpool Arena being ideal for a serving station. If reused, it will be the oldest used underground rail tunnel in the world and oldest part of any underground metro system.
• Box Tunnel in England, opened in 1841, was the longest railway tunnel in the world at the time of construction. It was dug and has a length of 2.9 km (1.8 mi).
• The 0.75 mile long, constructed in 1842 Shildon tunnel near Darlington, England, is the oldest sizable tunnel in the world still in use under a settlement.
• The Thames Tunnel, built by Marc Isambard Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1843, was the first underwater tunnel. Originally used as a foot-tunnel, it was a part of the East London Line of the London Underground until 2007, being the oldest section of the system. From 2010 the tunnel becomes a part of the London Overground system.
• The oldest underground sections of the London Underground were built using the cut-and-cover method in the 1860s. The Metropolitan, Hammersmith & City, Circle and District lines were the first to prove the success of a metro or subway system. Dating from 1863, Baker Street station is the oldest underground station in the world.
• The 1882 Col de Tende Road Tunnel, at 3182 metres long, was one of the first long road tunnels under a pass, running between France and Italy.
• The rail Severn Tunnel was opened in late 1886, at 4 miles 624 yd (7,008 m) long, although only 2¼ miles (3.62 km) of the tunnel is actually under the river. The tunnel replaced the Mersey Railway tunnel's longest under water record, which it held for less than a year.
• St. Clair Tunnel, also opened later in 1890, linked the elements of the Greathead tunnels on a larger scale.
• The 1927 Holland Tunnel was the first underwater tunnel designed for automobiles. This fact required a novel ventilation system.

The List of tunnels by length:

• The Delaware Aqueduct in New York USA is the longest tunnel, of any type, in the world at 137 km (85 mi). It is drilled through solid rock.
• The Seikan Tunnel in Japan is the longest rail tunnel in the world at 53.9 km (33.5 mi), of which 23.3 km (14.5 mi) is under the sea.
• The Channel Tunnel between France and the United Kingdom under the English Channel is the second-longest, with a total length of 50 km (31 mi), of which 39 km (24 mi) is under the sea.
• The Lötschberg Base Tunnel opened in June 2007 in Switzerland is the longest land rail tunnel, with a total of 34.5 km (21.4 mi).
• The Lærdal Tunnel in Norway from Lærdal to Aurland is the world's longest road tunnel, intended for cars and similar vehicles, at 24.5 km (15.2 mi).
• The Zhongnanshan Tunnel in People's Republic of China opened in January 2007 is the world's second longest highway tunnel and the longest road tunnel in Asia, at 18 km (11 mi).

The longest canal tunnel is the Standedge Tunnel in the United Kingdom, over 5 km (3.1 mi) long.