Lowari Tunnel

Lowari Tunnel
لواري سرنگ‬
Lowari Tunnel
Overview
Location Upper Dir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Coordinates 35°21′0″N 71°48′0″E / 35.35000°N 71.80000°E / 35.35000; 71.80000Coordinates: 35°21′0″N 71°48′0″E / 35.35000°N 71.80000°E / 35.35000; 71.80000
Status Partially open
Route Dir-Chitral Highway
Crosses Lowari Pass
Operation
Work begun September 2005 (2005-09)[1]
Opened July 2017 (2017-07)[2]
Technical
Length Tunnel 1: 8.5 kilometres (5.3 mi)
Tunnel 2: 1.9 kilometres (1.2 mi)
No. of lanes 2

Lowari Tunnel (Urdu: لواري سرنگ‬‎, Lowari Sarang) is an 10.4 kilometres (6.5 mi) vehicular tunnel under the Lowari Pass of the Hindu Kush mountains, between Dir and Chitral in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is operated by the National Highway Authority and carries traffic on the N-45 National Highway, thus bypassing Lowari Pass. Construction was partly completed by June 2017,[3][4][5][6] The total cost of the tunnel was ₨26.954 billion (US$260 million).[7]

History

Originally conceived as a railway tunnel, construction began in September 1975 and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. However, less than a year later work stopped in 1976 due to non allocation of funds.[8] Construction resumed again in September 2005 and was initially expected to be completed by 2009 and to convert it into a vehicle road tunnel.[8]

Benefit

The tunnel essentially allows traffic on the N45 National Highway to bypass the Lowari Pass and will reduce the 14 hour drive between Chitral and Peshawar to only 7 hours. The tunnel will also facilitate all-weather transportation, as during the long winter season the Lowari Pass is closed, and travelers to and from Chitral have to travel into Afghanistan and then back into Pakistan to access the rest of the country.

References

  1. ↑ "Lowari Tunnel likely to be completed by 2017". The Nation. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  2. ↑ Mian, Bakhtawar. "Sharif to inaugurate Lowari tunnel today". Dawn. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  3. ↑ "Lowari Main Tunnel". downloads.nha.gov.pk. Retrieved 2017-05-24.
  4. ↑ "Lowari Tunnel to be operational by June". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2017-05-24.
  5. ↑ "Lowari Tunnel Northern Portal Access Road". downloads.nha.gov.pk. Retrieved 2017-05-24.
  6. ↑ "Lowari Tunnel Southern Portal Access Road". downloads.nha.gov.pk. Retrieved 2017-05-24.
  7. ↑ "Lowari Tunnel Project to be completed next month at cost of Rs26bn". geo.tv.
  8. 1 2 Staff (16 April 2015). "Lowari Tunnel project to be completed by Oct, 2017". Pakistan Ki Awaz. Archived from the original on 26 May 2015.
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