The Negrón Tunnel () is an automotive

tunnel A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two portals common at each end, though there may be access and ve ...

which connects the provinces of

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

and León in Northern

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The tunnel is long and reaches a height of . The tunnel is in the

toll highway A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...

AP-66, which is part of the

Autovía A-66 The Autovía A-66 is a major highway in western Spain, part of the European route E803. The road is an upgrade of the N-630 which was undertaken section by section. The route roughly corresponds to the ancient Roman ' Silver Route' connecting ...

, one of the longest highways in Spain. The tunnel provides an alternate route to the Puerto de Pajares, a mountain pass that is considered dangerous for motorists.

History

Initially, the first roadway was planned with a cost of 19.5 million pesetas, but it rose to 70 million due to several unexpected problems in the terrain. This one was started in 1976 and gave work to 1,300 people during several years. The first of the two projected tunnels was opened in 1983 and worked provisionally as a single carriageway road. Works ended in 1997, with the opening of the second roadway in June 1997, which had length and costed 7.443m pesetas. Since its opening, the AP-66 is the main connection between Asturias and León.

References

External links

Video of the entering to Asturias by the Negrón Tunnel
Road tunnels in Spain Buildings and structures in Asturias Transport in Asturias Tunnels completed in 1997 Toll tunnels in Europe {{Tunnel-stub