Fehmarn Belt fixed link
The Fehmarn Belt fixed link (Danish: Femern Bælt-forbindelsen, German: Fehmarnbelt-Querung) or Fehmarn Belt tunnel is an under-construction immersed tunnel, which will connect the Danish island of Lolland with the German island of Fehmarn, crossing the 18-kilometre-wide (11 mi) Fehmarn Belt in the Baltic Sea.
Map showing the planned Fehmarn Belt fixed link in the Danish–German motorway system | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Official name | Femernbælt Link |
| Coordinates | 54°34′33″N 11°18′20″E |
| Status | Under construction |
| Crosses | Fehmarn Belt |
| Operation | |
| Work begun | 1 January 2021 |
| Opens | mid-2029 |
| Owner | Femern A/S |
| Traffic | rail and road |
| Toll | yes |
| Technical | |
| Length | 17.6 km (10.9 mi) |
| No. of tracks | 2 |
| No. of lanes | 4 |
| Electrified | yes |
| Operating speed | 200 km/h (125 mph) |
| Route map | |
It will provide a direct link between northern Germany and Lolland, and from there to the Danish island of Zealand and Copenhagen, becoming the world's longest road and rail tunnel. The tunnel will be a major connection between central Europe and Scandinavia. It will shorten the travel time between Lolland and Fehmarn from 45 minutes by ferry (excluding waiting and boarding time) to 10 minutes by car and seven minutes by train. The electrified high-speed rail line will be capable of reaching 200 km/h (125 mph).
The project's cost was initially estimated at €5.5 billion. By 2010, when Denmark and Germany signed the treaty to build the bridge, this had grown to €7.4 billion. The tunnel will be financed by Denmark, which will collect a toll from the crossing. Germany will pay a further €800 million to connect the crossing to its motorway network.
The tunnel will replace a heavily travelled ferry service from Rødby and Puttgarden, currently operated by Scandlines, a route known in German as the Vogelfluglinie and in Danish as Fugleflugtslinjen.
Fehmarn is connected with the German mainland by the Fehmarn Sound Bridge, and Lolland is connected by a tunnel and bridges with Zealand via the island of Falster. Zealand in turn is connected with the Swedish mainland via the Øresund Bridge. There is also a fixed connection between Zealand and Germany via the Great Belt Bridge to Funen and Jutland. The Fehmarnbelt tunnel is expected to be completed in 2029.