Pattipola Railway Tunnel, or the Summit Tunnel, is the third longest and the highest railway tunnel in Sri Lanka. It is located approximately away from the

Pattipola railway station Pattipola railway station is the 66th station on the Main Line, and is away from Colombo. It is the highest railway station in Sri Lanka with an elevation of high above mean sea level. The station has one platform with a second track as a sidin ...

, straddling the boundary of the

Badulla Badulla ( si, බදුල්ල, ta, பதுளை) is the capital and the largest city of Uva Province situated in the lower central hills of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of Uva Province and the Badulla District. Geography Badulla is ...

and Nuwara Eliya Districts. The tunnel was designed by Sir

Guilford Lindsey Molesworth Sir Guilford Lindsey Molesworth (1828–1925) was an English civil engineer. Biography Early years Molesworth was born in Millbrook, Hampshire and was the son of John Edward Nassau Molesworth, Vicar of Rochdale who was a great grandson of Ro ...

, the first director-general of

Railways Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

in Ceylon (1865–1871), and constructed by F. W. Faviell. In January 1951 the concrete lining of the tunnel collapsed due to the activities of the Garret engines that were running on the Main Line at that time. Permanent repairs were completed in March 1951 by the district engineer, Priyal de Silva. In 1981 the tunnel was renovated, with the removal of the concrete arches installed in 1951.

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