Europe is a continent in desperate need of improved infrastructural conditions. Especially in terms of roads and rail connections.
Three of the five largest European countries, namely The UK, Spain and Italy are cut off from the central European continent by sea or by mountains.
As long as there is a political will, these difficulties can be overcome by bold engineering.
By the way, a list of the longest tunnels of the world:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_longest_tunnels
Three of the five largest European countries, namely The UK, Spain and Italy are cut off from the central European continent by sea or by mountains. As long as there is a political will, these difficulties can be overcome by bold engineering.
The disconnects in Europe (and Japan) are being connected. Consider the Bering Straits between Russia and Alaska. Here, we are talking about connecting entire continents! Asia and North America.
When, and if, this happens, for us Alaskans, this will be a big event indeed.
The Simplon tunnel opened in 1906 - it's over a hundred years old. (Second tube, 1922). The Gothard dates to the 1880s. And don't forget the Trieste lines to Austria.
The biggest problem with Spain is the non-standard rail gauge. The rail link to Barcelona goes back many generations, and isn't really in the class of spectacular engineering.
One of the two largest mistakes made by England was the Chunnel.