Tunnel Visions Trivia Quiz

Answer: Norway

Lærdal Tunnel posed some interesting challenges for designers and engineers due to its length. One of those was air quality. In a tunnel of that length, exhaust fumes would accumulate to dangerous levels. To solve that problem, large fans at each end of the tunnel draw in fresh air, while the polluted air is expelled through a ventilation system and sent to an air treatment plant.

Another challenge faced by tunnel planners was the matter of claustrophobic travelers. To ease their anxiety, the tunnel was designed with a lighting system that replicates sunrise, and features three caves where drivers can stop for a break.

Answer: Psychedelic light show

The Bund Sightseeing Tunnel light show has received decidedly mixed reviews, from "senseless, yet fabulous" to "the most absurd tourist attraction in Shanghai, if not the world". Still, even forewarned tourists continue to go along for the ride. In addition to the light display, there are air-filled dolls that pop up, and a broadcast voice that utters phrases such as "nascent magma" and "fossil variants".

Answer: Thames

Multiple deadly floodings were among the many set-backs encountered while constructing the Thames Tunnel. The 18-year project was so fraught with problems that it became the subject of much derisive local humor, including the following poem by an unnamed author:

"Good Monsieur Brunel
Let misanthropy tell
That your work, half complete, is begun ill;
Heed them not, bore away
Through gravel and clay,
Nor doubt the success of your Tunnel.

That very mishap,
When the Thames forced a gap,
And made it fit haunt for an otter,
Has proved that your scheme
Is no catchpenny dream;
They can't say 'twill never hold water.' "

Thames Tunnel was completed in 1843. Unfortunately, lack of funds prevented the final phase of extending the entrance to allow for the horse and carriage traffic it was envisioned to serve. Instead, it became a pedestrian walkway and a haunt for shady characters such as beergirllaura.

In 1865, Thames Tunnel was purchased by the East London Railway Company, a consortium of six rail companies, and it was converted to a rail tunnel. The first train ran through Thames Tunnel in 1869. In 2007, the tunnel was closed to allow work on tracks and signaling. It reopened in 2010 and became part of the London Overground rail system.

Answer: It completed the island-hop faster than flying, due to Shinkansen, also known as bullet trains

Although the Seikan Tunnel was built to accommodate Shinkansen, planned bullet train expansion had not yet reached the tunnel when it opened. The project cost ¥538.4 billion ($3.6 billion or 2.7 billion). It did not easily recoup the investment since economic conditions at the time caused air travel rates to drop, providing a faster and cheaper method of travel.

However, the luxurious "Cassiopeia" 16+ hour overnight train trip is often fully booked.

Answer: 533 meters (1,750 feet)

Hezekiah's Tunnel, also known as Siloam Tunnel, delivered water from Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam. A Siloam inscription inside the tunnel states that the tunnel was excavated by two teams, one starting at each end and meeting in the middle. It is widely believed that the two teams were guided by workers hammering on the ground above.

Not surprisingly, there is clear evidence that there were several mistakes in direction made during construction.

Answer: Ho Chi Minh City

The Củ Chi Tunnels were used by the Viet Cong as hiding places, for storage of supplies and ammunition, and as a transportation corridor. When the tunnels were discovered by the opposition, American soldiers who investigated them called the conditions inside the tunnels "black echo". Life in the tunnels was not easy. Viet Cong soldiers endured poor air quality, ants, poisonous centipedes, scorpions, spiders and vermin.

A Viet Cong report suggested that half of the soldiers had malaria, and 100 percent had "significant" intestinal parasites.

Answer: Chipping away using hammers and other steel tools

The residents of Guoliang village tired of their remoteness and decided to take matters into their own hands...literally! They raised the money for their tools by selling herbs and goats, and built Guoliang Tunnel on their own. It took the villagers five years to carve the 1,200-meter tunnel (nearly one mile).

The windows served a practical purpose during construction, allowing workers to dispose of the rubble at points as they went.

Answer: 10 centimeters (4 inches)

At 10 centimeters per day, the glacier will have moved about 37 meters (121 feet) in one year. The Ice Tunnel is not part of the glacier, and obviously is not flexible. In addition, it is a seasonal attraction, since about 30 percent of the tunnel melts during the summer. Swiss tourist materials report that the Ice Tunnel and grotto have been dug every year since about 1870.

Answer: It also has two decks of five lanes each

The Yerba Buena Tunnel is a relatively modest 540 feet (160 meters) long. While it broke no records for length, it opened with the distinction of having the world's largest diameter of any transportation bore tunnel. It measures 76 feet (23 meters) wide and 58 feet (18 meters) high, making the tunnel taller than a five-story building. Over a quarter-million cars travel through the tunnel every day, many of them carrying commuters to and from Oakland and downtown San Francisco.

Answer: 50 minutes / 35 minutes

There are two stops along the way in the Jungfraujoch Tunnel, where passengers can debark and enjoy spectacular mountain views through windows which served as portals for removal of excavated rock during construction. The end of the tunnel marks the end of the rail line, and there is only one destination: the Sphinx Laboratory.

The Sphinx is one of the world's oldest research stations, and one of the highest, and the train ride through Jungfraujoch Tunnel is the only fixed, permanent mode of access.