The World's Five Longest Road Tunnels

There may not be many amongst us who consider a tunnel as a must see attraction on a road trip, but there will always be those that admire engineering masterpieces, of which the following five tunnels most certainly are. The world’s five longest road tunnels are - 

The Mont Blanc Tunnel - French Side

1) The longest road tunnel in the world is the 24.5 kilometer long, Laerdal Tunnel, located between Laerdal and Aurland in Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. The tunnel, which is located along the country's E16 Road, is toll free as is it's near neighbour the 11.4 kilometer long, Guduanga Tunnel, which comes in as the world's sixth longest road tunnel. 

2) The world's second longest road tunnel and the world's longest double tube road tunnel is the 18 kilometer long, Zongnanshan Tunnel, located along the Xian Ankang Highway in Shaanxi Province of north west China. The tunnel, which passes through the Zhongnan Mountain, is located at a depth of 1,640 meters below sea level. 

The tunnel is equipped with changing coloured lights and moving patterns on the ceiling, implemented in order to keep drivers alert. 
There is a toll levied on travel through this tunnel but I was unable to find a list of prices.

3) The world's third longest road tunnel is the 16.9 kilometer long, St Gotthard Tunnel, located along the A2 Autoroute situated in the Lepontine Alps between the alpine villages of Goschen and Airold in Switzerland. The tunnel was built in order that traffic could make the journey between central Switzerland and northern Italy during the Winter months when the nearby Gotthard Pass is generally impassable due to snow.   
The tunnel is toll free.

4) The world's fourth longest road tunnel is the 13.9 kilometer long, Arlberg Tunnel, which is located along the Arlberg Massif between the alpine villages of Langen in Voralberg and St Anton in Tyrol, Austria. 

The tunnel, which is located at 1,228 meters above sea level and directly under the 1,640 meter high, Arlberg Pass, is located along the S16 Arlbergschellstrasse, and was built in order to allow traffic to traverse the massif during the Winter months as the Arlberg Pass becomes impassable due to snow. 

The tunnel has a toll of nine euros a journey, although the above Arlberg Pass is free.

 

5) The world's fifth longest road tunnel is the 11.6 kilometer long, Mont Blanc Tunnel, located inside the European Alp's highest mountain Mont Blanc. 
The tunnel is located between Chamonix in Haute Savoie in France and Courmayeur in the Aosta Valley in Italy. 

The tunnel, which is located at the terminus of France's A40 Autoroute, consists of two international border controls at either end and implements a speed limit of 50 kilometers an hour with vehicles expected to maintain a distance of 150 meters apart. These rules are enforced by the use of several surveillance cameras located within the tunnel.

 

                                                              Tolls are set at -  

From the French side be expected to pay   /  From the Italian side be expected to pay  

Cars - One-way €41.40 - Return: €51.60           /   Cars - One-way €40.90 - Return €51.00

Motorbikes -  One-way €27.40 - Return €34.40 /   Motorbikes - One-way €27.00 - Return €34.00

Campervans - One-way €54.70 - Return €68.80 / Campervans -  One-way €54.10 - Return  
                                                                                                                           €68.00

The Gotthard Pass & the Strada della Tremola, Switzerland
Image courtesy of Markus Bernet, wikimedia commons

                              FIND HOTELS NEAR THE WORLD'S LONGEST TUNNELS