PM Modi asks railways to build hybrid tunnels for rail, road traffic

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has suggested the Ministry of Railways to construct hybrid tunnels in mountains for railway lines which can also be used as a road. This suggestion came about last week when the Prime Minister was reviewing a railway project in Himachal Pradesh, which is anticipated to further link on to Manali and Leh. Around seven tunnels are being constructed for the railway line under construction from Punjab's Bhanupali to Himachal Pradesh's Bilaspur. In the future, while building tunnels in hilly areas for railway projects, a hybrid system should be devised, so that apart from the railway track, tunnels can also be utilised as roads. Such road-rail tunnels shared by road and rail lines can be more economical, Modi said. Presently, no such tunnel exists in India, while some exist abroad. However, India has built long road and rail tunnels individually in the mountainous areas, like the 8.8 km long Atal highway tunnel near Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh and the Pir Panjal railway tunnel of length 11 km in Jammu and Kashmir. On August 25, Modi was reviewing the 65 km long Bhanupali-Bilaspur-Beri railway line project in Himachal Pradesh and set deadlines for governments of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh for land acquisition and expedite the project. An additional 498 km long line from Bilaspur to Leh is also in the projects, which would be the highest railway line. Image Source Also read: Kolkata to receive three underground tunnels for metro rail expansion Also read: Uttarakhand requests approval for Dehradun-Tehri double-lane tunnel