How Europe's Building the World's Longest Underwater Tunnel!

[@matthewdower5383]

This is what we can do if we are not fighting each other. Incredible Engineering.

[@dilligaf2818]

great comment

[@KingCatoChaos]

Ironically there has been plenty of "fighting" about this tunnel aswell. None of the locals on either side want it.

[@timballenger1416]

Thems be fighten words 😂

[@Jan-g5w5c]

@@KingCatoChaos not in my backyard

[@Dendarang]

Imagine if Europe had united in the 19th century. Instead of killing millions of young men and wasting probably equivalent of trillions of euros, we could've been on the moon by now.

[@mrjakobt]

0:38 There actually used to be train service across the Fehmarn belt. The trains would go onto the ferry. You can still see the rails on Google Maps at the ferry dock.

[@AaronWitt]

I don’t think that runs anymore but they did try ir

[@blahfasel2000]

​@@AaronWitt They didn't just try. The ferries carried trains from 1963 to 2019. They only stopped because the train lines leading to the ferry terminals are now in the process of being upgraded for the new tunnel. Edit: And before that there had already been a train ferry between Warnemünde in Germany and Gedser in Denmark since 1886. After WW2 Warnemünde was in East Germany, so a new train ferry from Großenbrode to Gedser was established in 1951, which was then replaced by the Puttgarden (Fehmarn) to Rødby ferry in 1963 after a bridge connecting Fehmarn to the (West) German mainland had been built.

[@RangieNZ]

The ferries between New Zealand's North and Sound Islands have rails. Rail cars with freight travel on the ferries.

[@blahfasel2000]

@@RangieNZ Yeah, this isn't the only train ferry connection in the world by any means. There are about two dozen or so currently operating around the world, and more than a hundred former ones that are now defunct.

[@mikkolukas]

@@AaronWitt don't be that ignorant

[@natestinson69]

I watched a whole documentary on this not long ago, one of the coolest projects at happening in the world right now, can’t wait to see what else you do with it

[@maltesigmund1843]

the problem is our lovely Germany because there is no sutable bridge to the island Fehmarn when the tunnel is finished! So the tunnel can't be used as wished and the trains can't go through

[@TheFlatronify]

@@maltesigmund1843 "tja" Classic German thing :D

[@Handled-x2n]

Can you share the name of the documentary please?

[@timessix8434]

@@maltesigmund1843 So, they didn’t think it through properly…?

[@maltesigmund1843]

@@timessix8434 year somehow

[@Mr.J689]

This must be one of the best documentary's I've seen so fare about this huge project! Good Job 👍

[@ane-louisestampe7939]

I was just about to say that 😊

[@stco2426]

@@ane-louisestampe7939 so true

[@markfryer9880]

I have been a Carpenter for 40 years, and this sort of project is enough to make your head spin. Making a machine to pre assemble the reo-bar is mind-blowing, but it is necessary to take away the human element, which could easily introduce flaws into the reo cage. The placement of the concrete is by pump booms and vibration to ensure proper compaction, super critical in an underwater environment. Aaron and his colleagues are very fortunate to be able to visit all of these amazing places and projects around the world and yo share them with us. Mark from Melbourne Australia

[@fabr5747]

Every single comment or close is wrong... 1. It's a rebar, not a reo-bar 2. The reason of the machine for the rebar is not to remove the human element, but because usually rebars are tied with tiny steel cables. Here they are welded to stay in place and remain recise during the movements, but also and mostly because they assemble it flat, and then lift it. It's VERY unsafe to lift those cages without welding. Doing the welding by hand is too slow. And it multiplies the time for the workers with the back down. So in terms of health, safety it's dumb. BUT MOSTLY, it's the same segments. So it's repeatable. Therefore it makes sense. If it was not repeatable, a machine would make 0 sense. So nope, sorry for your assumptions. Unlike what you think, moving the rebar by one centimetre of imprecision is not changing anything to the structure. 3. No the pump does NOT change anything about the compaction. There are several reasons for that choice. - the volume that needs to be poured in a rather short period is massive - they want a monolithic structure - they are indoor Why does that matter? They need to go at the right rhythm for the structure to be indeed monolithic. That rhythm might be possible outdoor with 2 cranes working on 2 sides of the structure. But indoor, with the overhead crane on rails, it would be so slow. So there is no choice, the pump is the only solution to be productive and to end up with a monolithic structure. And it's the safest. And you can see that they use at least 4 pumps. Impossible to work with as many pouring teams in such a short space with a crane. 4. Yes the vibration is important... But guess what, it's as important in a tunnel, in a building, on a runway, etc... It's a critical phase of pouring concrete anyway. But here it's much easier because the environment is controlled, the concrete has an optimal flow and resistance, and they can stay consistant, which is close to impossible outdoor.

[@ce1834]

@@fabr5747 ☝🤓

[@local_authority]

​@@fabr5747 who asked?

[@fabr5747]

@@local_authority He says wrong stuff... A person willing to learn would be happy to by corrected...

[@markdorman52]

Same here! Carpenter with 45 years experience. Mark from Oregon USA

[@swiatoperatora]

I'm proud to be part of this project 😊

[@AaronWitt]

thanks for making it happen!!

[@sdsbc-z2l]

Don't gaskets wear out over time?

[@1997Banane]

When will the first Element flow out?

[@budgiefriend]

@@sdsbc-z2l One would think.

[@GiovanniBerthoBriand]

You can!

[@HansMilling]

Crazy project. I worked for Ramboll when they did the calculations back in the late 00’s for the construction and price. They were competing with another Danish engineering company, that was projecting the cost of a bridge. If they had to make this venture sland, it would have been more expensive, obstructed ocean currents and ship traffic and lost to the bridge design. Everyone thought it would be a bridge. Politicians and journalists always talked about the upcoming bridge to Germany. It’s only because emissions have come down on vehicles, that it’s possible to construct the tunnel with no air vents in the middle. The tunnel will never close to bad weather like storms, ice etc like a bridge. So I am happy the tunnel won. It’s an old agreement with Sweden actually that we are even making the tunnel. As part of the agreement with the bridge to Sweden, Denmark signed a contract to also build a link to Germany, to significantly shorten the route and time for Swedish cargo. So the Swedish demanded that Denmark would created the link to Germany to approve the bridge to Sweden. Going from Copenhagen to Berlin will be an hour faster when the tunnel is complete. Perhaps even faster as there is no highway in Germany to Femern and that is being build as well, as well as the last few kilometres on the Danish side had no highway. No more waiting for the ferry or missing it.

[@RZZ-1701]

Das Schlimmste an Autofähren sind für mich die vielen unvernünftigen Autofahrer, die ihre Motoren auf der Fähre viel zu früh wieder Anlassen. Bei der Preisgestaltung der Tunnelmaut wünsche ich mir einen deutlichen Discount für alle Fahrzeuge, die bei der Tunneldurchfahrt keinen Verbrennungsmotor verwenden. DE www.youtube.com/@elektrotrucker DE www.youtube.com/@nextmovevideos EN www.youtube.com/@electrictrucker EN www.youtube.com/@fullychargedshow/featured

[@perperers2502]

@@RZZ-1701 Excellent idea. When discussing benefits and drawbacks regarding EVs with my friends, who have not yet turned electric, their main hesitancy for not taking the step is economic reasons. Clean air and climate are not sufficient reasons apparently. Look at Norway where they have made rules favouring EVs very much economically. Now 95 % of new sales are EVs. The argument in Sweden, ironically from the right who normally don't care much about the less the well off, is that such measures only favour affluent people who buy expensive cars. But expensive EVs will get older and become cheaper at the second hand market.

[@anthonypaterson7066]

@@perperers2502 I do not agree, currently there is NO value or market for used EV's.

[@Albert-wk8ts]

@@perperers2502 I think diesel is still greener for me personally. I drive short trips and not very often. The upfront emission of an EV is way higher than a diesel, due to the required mining for rare earth and metals for the battery. People tend to forget that.

[@Tanks-In-Space]

​@@perperers2502 ..Your EVs have failed. People only get EVs because they are subsidized.... But one day, that will be gone. Here in Holland, driving an EV is now 9 cents per kilometer more expensive than driving a gas car. . . In 2025, I will have to pay for the excess power my solar panels produce as there is way too much electricity during the day (everyone has panels thanks to subsidizing schemes), and the electricity grid can't handle it.

[@fernandosibecas3492]

A while ago I watched a video showing how the tunnel would be constructed in 3d animation, but watching how it´s actually getting built is awe inspiring, the scale is just incredible, I’ve never seen anything that huge being precast!!

[@Realcfx]

The company behind this actually has livestream videos available on their channel for anyone that is interested :)

[@jimris4170]

Link?

[@hardcoretrance3435]

kzbin.infoB1olJ3MhUhA?si=rLk6M3L0I99gGHh3 ​@@jimris4170

[@djanddk5596]

@@jimris4170 www.youtube.com/@FemernAS/streams

[@olejrgenbrnner4708]

@@jimris4170 I assume www.youtube.com/@FemernAS? (kzbin.info/www/bejne/eGLSnX1pgs2InqM)

[@jimris4170]

@@olejrgenbrnner4708 thnx!

[@johnbmw550i]

Incredible engineering, wow.

[@Jab7581]

Aaron please turn up the volume on your videos some of them are really quiet and please do a follow up video to this one I would love to know how they connect the tunnel sections under water 💧

[@6yjjk]

Maybe you didn't hear it because the volume was too low, but he said at the beginning that this was part 1, with part 2 covering exactly that.

[@saltlakrids]

Hi Aaron. Thanks for covering our huge project here in Denmark and Germany. I have som factual corrections for those who might be interested. "Currently the only route from Germany to Denmark via land has been up and aaall around the baltic" you say. Actually Germany and Denmark borders are right in the middle of your yellow line where it buldges to the left. Flensburg (DE) and Padborg (DK). That part of Denmark that is connected to mainland Europe is called Jutland and it covers 70% ( 29000 sq km) of land of entire Denmark. The tunnel that is being built goes from the Danish island Lolland just below Zealand (where you will find Copenhagen). Jutland and Zealand is connected by 2 bridges. One in Middelfart that connects Jutland to the smaller island Funen and one on the east side of Funen that connects to Zealand. This crossing is called Storebælt. (Great belt). In June of 1998 the bridge was fully built and opened up for car traffic. Before that we would have to take a ferry to go to Funen or to Jutland. "More recently" you say its been possible to cross from Denmark to Germany on a 45 minute ferry ride which works fine. Yes it absolutely does. Thats not that recent though. The ferry opened up in 1963. That was how we would go to Germany to go to the rest of Europe before the bridge opened up in 1998. Say you are in Copenhagen, you would actually reach Hamburg in Germany faster by taking the bridge, than sailing on the ferry. Also trains has historically since 1963 boarded the ferry to go to Germany. It was never needed to go to the beidge which was built 35 years later. The route is called "Vogelfluglinie" which ins German and translates to the danish word "fugleflugt" which would mean bird flight or "straight line"

[@ane-louisestampe7939]

The tunnel is NOT going from Sjælland! Were afraid not to be taken serious if you correctly said Lolland 🤣

[@saltlakrids]

Oops. Fixed it now ☺️ tak ☺️

[@ane-louisestampe7939]

@@saltlakrids 🤩

[@CatMeow24-qr7uo]

This project is one of the biggest engineering flexes I’ve ever seen 😮😂

[@fabr5747]

You should check the Norwegian floating tunnel highway ! Unlike this project safely at the bottom of the sea, it will be floating in a fjord, but the tunnel part will be underwater. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jX7FhK18m8SqisU

[@CatMeow24-qr7uo]

@ ok wow 😮 Thanks for sharing! ❤️

[@xiv3r]

That's similar to China Shenzhen-Zhongshan mega link bridge that was open last June of 2024

[@fabr5747]

@@xiv3r This link is more like the Öresund Bridge. Here, on both sides they plunge in a tunnel from the banks, there is no bridge section. But indeed, the tunnelling method seems to be similar. BUT this technology isn't new although it's not common. Examples? - Bouwdok Barendrecht (2012) - Transbay Tube (1969) - Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (2010) - Drogdentunnelen (following the Öresund bridge (2000) The technique has been used since the 1950s, What changed with the example here, and the one you mentioned is the scale, and the industrialisation of the serial production as the projects are larger.

[@mi12no]

Just one more lane

[@Bigern2998]

Incredible! Visiting that tunnel will be a bucket list trip for me

[@Treesusb]

Always showing us the coolest construction projects. Thanks Aaron

[@ce1834]

The link will be a gamechanger. Can't believe I've not come across this channel before! Production quality looks great - subscribed!

[@AaronWitt]

Thank you!!

[@m.a.c.8366]

Very impressive undertaking and a good candidate for progress updates. Looking forward to Part II, thanks for sharing.

[@Chainsaw-ASMR]

3:00 It’s incredible that they can build such a large project with only 1 ton of steel 😅

[@carstenf279]

It is a Danish ton! 😁

[@LarryofDenmark]

🤣🤣🤣

[@CHRIS-xm1do]

I worked on the second Severn crossing in the precasting sheds making deck and pier sections,but this makes our efforts look small fry. Great vid.

[@patrickthewelder3598]

Immersed tunnels where invented in the Netherlands before WWII, and now Dutch companies are also working on this project.

[@Christopher_Rock]

Pretty sure the Immersed tunnels was also constructed in the US in the late 1800s

[@KyrilPG]

They were also used for railway projects like the Seine river crossing of certain lines of the Paris metro circa 1905 or something. Isn't it more like the Netherlands have perfected the technique for large scale tunnels?

[@RickWagenvoort]

This tunnel is also designed by a Dutch company, Tunnel Engineering Consultants (TEC).

[@commandbrawler9348]

​​​@@Christopher_Rockyou are wrong, the Netherlands has been at the fore front when it comes to water management and construction. America doesnt even come close, because we have been doing it since before America was even a country!

[@LarryofDenmark]

You did some dredging and maybe Mamoet is involved but design the bridge ? I dont think so.

[@doughahn9263]

Now a video to show the rest of the process. Surely the dredging and placement is just as impressive.

[@AaronWitt]

Part 2 is coming soon!

[@nigelmcculloch3746]

Great video! Here in New Zealand we have a north and south islands with a gape of 15k at the closest points and intercepted by the Cook Strait which is deep and notoriously rough at times. There has been talk of a bridge construction to join the islands but has never gotten past a serious standing around a coffee machine discussion! Watching this video shows that it could possibly work in New Zealand with the modern technology available today, the biggest problem we have though is our population is less than 6 million, so i am guessing we will need to be approaching something like 20 million people before any serious progress for a permanent link between the islands to happen

[@theispetersen2174]

@@nigelmcculloch3746 5 million in Denmark 😊

[@KyrilPG]

​@@nigelmcculloch3746 Wow, i didn't know how many people lived in New Zealand until now. That's like half the number of daily transit riders in my city. For some reason, I thought NZ had at least 10 or 12 million inhabitants. Yeah it's probably more complicated to fund and build large infrastructure projects with a small population. Though the Faeroe Islands, halfway between Scotland, Norway and Iceland, have built quite a set of impressive undersea road tunnels to link the islands together. They've managed to do that despite a very very small population of only 55,000 inhabitants. There's something like half a dozen more tunnels planned, so I guess they've found a way to build big with a tiny population. Slightly off topic question : I know it's made up, but where would roughly be the town of Brokenwood (from the eponymous TV series) if it existed, and do you know where it's filmed?

[@nigelmcculloch3746]

@@theispetersen2174 yes, but you have Europe as a neighbor, a huge trading partner, our nearest neighbor is Australia and mining some agriculture are their main exports

[@spudatbattleaxe]

Absolutely incredible amounts of engineering! I have so many questions. Excited to see part 2!

[@PeaLoop]

What a remarkable piece of engineering. Great video.

[@rickkearn7100]

That's one slick operation. From design and engineering to completing a segment it's quite impressive. Well documented as usual by a visionary YT channel creator. Cheers.

[@AaronWitt]

thanks Rick

[@akyhne]

​@@AaronWittYou need to fix your title. This will be the longest *immersed* tunnel, not the longest tunnel. There are tunnels, that are much longer.

[@PrebenH.Andersen]

@@akyhne- Yes, and he simply does not know what he is talking about - the thread is full of pure nonsense

[@daninio5004]

In Belgium a smaller tunnel of this type is being built. (Scheldetunnel - Oosterweel link Antwerp) I’ve been lucky to be able to visit that construction site in Bruges. Next year they’ll float those elements out to Antwerp

[@Steve25g]

and leaking

[@RomanAKozak]

The scale is insane

[@al_d7829]

These drone shots need some sick Dune soundtrack tunes. Absolutely awesome to watch

[@AaronWitt]

Thank you very much!!

[@AndersMag]

This construction is beyond mind blowing. As a Swede I was amazed with Øresundsbron (between Sweden and Denmark) as it was constructed and finally opened in 2000. 15.9 km (9.88 miles) total (bridge + tunnel. This tunnel between Denmark/Germany is another testimony to European engineering at its best. 18 km (>11 miles) under water. That’s something special. Thank you for the video.

[@gavinpretorius2252]

Floating a 73k ton lego.. Humans are amazing. Thanks for sharing. Great channel. 💥💥

[@akyhne]

Well, Lego is from Denmark, so...

[@PSimonsen]

@@akyhne Thats all we know about building stuff. If it aint LEGO, we can't do it.

[@apocotokomu69]

Sooo You mean physics, not humans.

[@nicholasarrow2443]

@@apocotokomu69 Physics will struggle to do much, without human help.

[@apocotokomu69]

@@nicholasarrow2443 That's definition of American way of thinking... Good luck, Trump would love You as a secretary of unknown basic rules of universe.

[@karlejnarch]

New subscriber here. To all the commenters saying it's not the world's longest underwater tunnel - you are correct. The headline is a bit of a 'click bait' I agree, but it seems to work 😉 It says in the description. It's the longest immersed tube tunnel, the Channel Tunnel is a bored tunnel. And please note that the latter is just a train tunnel, this one is for cars and trains. They both have their advantages. I have been using the Eurotunnel for over twenty years and it doesn't bother me to have van and caravan loaded onto a train. But on Fehmarn Belt the tunnel has to compete with other routes so it makes sense to have a combined road and rail tunnel here. Eurotunnel only has to compete with ferries for road travel and not on train travel.

[@RedSntDK]

Maybe loading cars onto trains is the wiser option, as time will tell, because a car pileup and fire in an unventilated tunnel as this'll be might be catastrophic. I'm reminded of the Mont Blanc Tunnel fire and the Gotthard Tunnel fire for reference.

[@budgiefriend]

Subbed for pure knowledge, without biased fluff.

[@AaronWitt]

Thank you

[@j.w.salphabet2096]

I really enjoyed learning everything I did in this first video and I am anxiously awaiting for the second part.

[@twisterwiper]

Once this is finished it will free up a lot of congestion on E45 in Denmark. Right lane of E45 southbound is one continuous line of trucks today, from the E20/E45 intersection and all the way to the German border.

[@galdessa1]

Must be all those Ikea boxes travelling south into Europe.

[@lws7394]

Don't worry. The tunnel will create quite some more traffic to Copenhagen and Sweden. But faster travel.

[@ReneSkotte]

And the congestion around Hamburg will increase significantly, it will become an even bigger nightmare than it is today.

[@lws7394]

@@galdessa1 Those boxes are , for a great deal, produced in Poland ...

[@lws7394]

@@ReneSkotte Induced Demand ; Jevons Paradox ( increased efficiency lead to an increased use rather than decreased ...) ; Braess Paradox ; Lewis-Mogridge Position ; Marchetti Constant .... Downs-Thompson Paradox makes sense : Only better transit * and other non vehicle alternatives) can reduce/contain traffic ( congestion) ..

[@peterhoz]

10:14 "The whole idea is to cast every SEGMENT in the same environment" 😉

[@josephm6734]

Great video! Can you make some longer ones? I imagine a lot of your footage was cut. It would be fascinating to see the full content on a second channel.

[@KyrilPG]

Fantastic video! Eagerly awaiting part 2. The rebar structures are so massive, it must be quite something to see this while standing inside of it. Impressive! Just discovered your channel and immediately subbed. The format is nice, informative, and cool. It would be great if you could also do a multi part video like this one but about the Grand Paris Express project. It's already quite advanced and built in 2 main phases, the first one is almost finished and a portion of the second phase has begun construction while others will start soon. So there's pretty much every step happening at the same time in dozens of different building sites. The scope of this project is huge, it would be fascinating.

[@scdecade]

Banger video! Great job. What an amazing accomplishment of engineering and production

[@AaronWitt]

Thanks for watching

[@beep1955beep]

You could quite literally make two more videos!!! One about prepping the sea floor and one for the installation!!!

[@keepitsimpleengineer]

Excellent ~ head & shoulders above most 'how' engineering videos are done ~ Bravo

[@dmwi1549]

Amazing. I visited similar amazing jobsight where they cast a bridge deck in place and pushed it in sections out over a German Valley. And that was curved. The upright supports had been built first.

[@botjesus5512]

Another banger Aaron, you make it all look and sound so epic also props for being on top of all these insane projects and getting there to show us all. Keep it up!

[@derrickpettit86]

That is an absolutely genius engineering project, so cool, thanks for sharing

[@AaronWitt]

thanks for watching

[@Machines.In.Action]

15:23 - 73,000 tons of concrete-engineering marvels like this are redefining underwater construction!

[@13thTechnology]

Wow! This level of construction is what makes the impossible possible.

[@connorshoots]

it’s insane how us “monkeys” managed to move 150 million pounds in one go….

[@fernandosibecas3492]

A Ford class carrier is about 100.000 tons and over 1000ft long!!

[@connorshoots]

@ fair point but thats a boat, these are solid concrete structures

[@florianix8272]

Maybe you can visit the Brenner Base Tunnel in Austria which will be the longest tunnel in the world (with the existing part in Innsbruck)

[@giovannidepetris6335]

Europe is great, the only hope for humanity

[@njorsing]

Welcome to Denmark!

[@jrny7777]

My life's dream is to drive across this tunnel. My ancestors are from Fehmarn, Germany, and if I do NOTHING else in my life, I'll be dammed if I do not get to drive across this! I am so incredibly excited to see this video, and wish more on KZbin would have explored this behemoth of an effort!!!!! When is part 2??

[@HBvD]

It’s even more interesting that they start building the internals of the tunnel (technical stuff) while not all sections are linked.

[@garyjarvis2730]

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel (CBBT) used a similar strategy for the 2 tunnel sections in the project. It was opened in 1964 to traffic and was one of the longest bridges in the US at 17.6 miles. This project dwarfs the CBBT in every respect and is an engineering marvel.

[@martinwinther6013]

Nobody other than denmark wanted anything to do with the project.. Until it started. denmark couldnt get support from germany , couldnt get support from anyone but still decided to move forward. Wasnt until it became obvious how relatively easy(costly , but easy) it was that germany joined the project. Its 2 countries running the project. With a bit of economic support from the regional cashpools of the EU.

[@permunkholmolesen1079]

The whole project is paid by Denmark except from the EU money. The Germans only have to pay for upgrading railroads and roads on the german side.

[@christofferappelhansen2250]

Remember the Swedish role in getting it all started. So not only a danish/german thing but also a great future advantage for transport to Sweden.

[@VcTr04.]

I love to see a video of this, I'm part of the small design team that does the metal grid that supports the Rebar's. I have yet to visit the site. Great video Aaron!

[@k7u5r8t4]

I just read, that 8oo companies are involved. 500 of those are Danish.

[@nicolasvarone2477]

Absolutly insane, tank you for sharing

[@jegog.]

I'm interested to hear how they get these floating segments to sink. If they are naturally buoyant when filled with air, wouldn't the finished tunnel be buoyant as well? Are they designed to be just slightly buoyant so that when a little bit of weight is added they will sink?

[@timadminelias580]

That is also my question. I think he said they will add some weight to them once they are out in deeper water. I'm sure they will figure it out as they fill the dry docks with water.

[@NATIK001]

They fill chambers inside the segments with water to sink them. There exist some animations of how they do it online if you are curious, but basically they pump water into the segments and air out to sink them when they are in the correct spot, much safer than loading them down with weights and much less cumbersome.

[@TheKyosanim62]

The project needed approval in both Denmark and Germany, but the construction and financing is 100% Danish.

[@heltratt6363]

Its says cofounded by EU..

[@NATIK001]

@heltratt6363 Yeah, EU is funding it too. I think the commenter intends to say that Germany isn't paying for the tunnel or helping construct it. Germany is only updating internal German infrastructure to the point where the tunnel surface in Germany. It's a 100% Danish project with EU funding.

[@erkkavilhunen7852]

Germany didn't say enough is enough. Denmark had to basically force them to get in on it. Denmark is paying most of it. Bridge between Denmark and Sweden has already basically paid itself. Same will happen in this case and Denmark will collect profits.

[@davidchristensen6908]

Can’t wait to see this open. Imagine all the hours and fuel this will save.

[@mctravel2]

now a days the ferry´s between Rødby and Puttgarden are electric - so the fuel consumption will rise when the vehicles has to transport themselves. (they don´t use fuel when placed on a ferry)

[@andersl8233]

@@mctravel2 the ferries between Rødby and Puttgarden are not electric

[@acb9896]

Helmet stickers really complete the look. Gotta get those TactiCool HiTek camo work boots.

[@stevenwright800]

Cool video. You and your team killed it

[@AaronWitt]

thank you very much

[@elcorconstruction]

This is incredible, great info and work Aaron!

[@multi.interested.]

Just a real comment with enough words to compensate for the bot comments, which will hopefully be deleted soon.

[@MUCKFOOT399]

gay pride

[@AaronWitt]

Thank you

[@DonkeyHotey-l2e]

Seems like what a bot would say.

[@matt45540]

The new model of bot is here

[@jackstanley1860]

@@MUCKFOOT399just like your papy

[@sjururhjgaard8794]

We have a tunnel in the Faroe Islands that is 11.24 km long, opened the 19th December 2020, which connects three towns and has an underwater roundabout. It is called the Eysturoy tunnel.

[@EinfachFredhaftGaming]

Germany hasn't even begun to build the connection yet as far as I'm aware 😂

[@Sp4mMe]

Well, the connection already exists. It's supposed to be expanded to two lines and electrified though, and that's behind schedule (of course). They started on it though.

[@EinfachFredhaftGaming]

@Sp4mMe rail connection is still in the planning phase as far as I'm aware

[@Sp4mMe]

​@@EinfachFredhaftGaming It's part of the railway line Bahnstrecke Lübeck-Puttgarden; completed in the late 1920s. There used to be train ferries crossing there - just take a look at google earth if you don't trust DB that much. The train tracks are right at the ferry harbor next to the tunnel already. Like I said the connection is supposed to be improved (6 projects in total) and that's in various stages. But fundamentally, a single-track connection is already in place.

[@commonsense31]

And not even talking about the Brand new Highway upgrade they have promised. They need to get their shit together, most of the construction of the actually arrival point are well underway. But its up to the Germans to construct the aditionel Rail and Access way.

[@permunkholmolesen1079]

What had you expected from germans?

[@bobwightman1054]

The A55 crossing of the Conway estuary in North Wales used the same "cut and shut" technique. Due to the tides once they had the sections in place then twice a day they had to load up and drive every dump truck into the tunnel to weigh it down and stop it moving! They had to do this for some time even after the "shut" phase as the material used was so waterlogged it reacted to the water movement.

[@Flip97rza]

people are awesome, really

[@raymondgochenour8725]

It’s really neat how they’re putting it together. I enjoyed that. Thanks for sharing merry Christmas.

[@jorishnathanael1812]

Keep making more vids like this

[@AaronWitt]

thank you -- that's the plan!!

[@DeadEyeDave]

What's the expected lifespan of the GINA gasket? What is the maintenance or replacement plan for that seal?

[@joelvanstee7324]

The Gina gasket is documented and designed to have a minimum lifespan of 120 years. This is supported by samples taken from its first application in the 1960s, which confirm and validate this longevity. Additionally, there is a secondary inner seal, known as the Omega gasket, which is also designed for a lifespan of at least 120 years. Unlike the Gina gasket, the Omega gasket can be replaced if necessary. These lifespans assume proper usage and no significant deviations from the original design parameters. This extraordinary type of seal which are the largest in the world have a story of their own. If interested I could give you more information or you contact the manufacturer my former employer: Trelleborg.

[@lukeknowles5700]

3:03 "We need a ton of steel" Actually, the number is closer to 360,000 tons!!

[@matsv201]

Got to say, that is some really nice cast they got there. Almost prefectly uniform

[@ronblack7870]

you don't need a ton of steel you need a megaton of steel. sometimes saying a ton of something is actually minimizing it.

[@k7u5r8t4]

Well, even as a non native English speaker myself, I KNOW that "a ton of" is a general expression, that simply means "a LOT of"!!! Btw my comment is not specifically aimed at you! I see many comments here being "all clever" about the use of that expression here.

[@PDBath]

A very informative video. Each stage was well explained but it is still amazing that it actually works. How long will those gaskets last in seawater?

[@joelvanstee7324]

The Gina gasket is documented and designed to have a minimum lifespan of 120 years. This is supported by samples taken from its first application in the 1960s, which confirm and validate this longevity. Additionally, there is a secondary inner seal, known as the Omega gasket, which is also designed for a lifespan of at least 120 years. Unlike the Gina gasket, the Omega gasket can be replaced if necessary. These lifespans assume proper usage and no significant deviations from the original design parameters. The waterstops seen between the segments also have a tested and design life of 120 yrs.

[@HenningJohansen]

Question: do the rubber segment water seals have an estimated life span?

[@24jh42]

The concrete has a promised life expectancy of 120 years. The rubber seals will last longer than that. But even if they fail it is possible to repair. This tunnel from 1969 in Denmark en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limfjordstunnelen has had problems with the seals, (not good quality plus underground unstable shifting the tunnel elements). It was the first submersed tunnel in Denmark and expertize on such construction is a lot better today. There has been many repairs done to this from the inside (seawater and the rebars in the concrete does not mix well). The tunnel is still being used by approx. 90000 cars every day. The repair periods though is a pain in the ass for the commuters. During rush hour slow traffic/stops is a daily problem, but when they close one tunnel tube for repairs, and instead of 3 lanes going south or north, you get one lane going in each direction. I have been stuck waiting there for many hours, and there is no other viable alternative for all those cars. Its either a 60 km detour going east to catch a ferry with a 10 car capacity, or a detour west 120 km for a small two laned bridge that is already bogged down by traffic.

[@HenningJohansen]

@@24jh42 Thanks for the response - much appreciated.

[@SRussy4325]

That is a very impressive project, thanks for sharing.

[@AaronWitt]

Thank you for watching!

[@Skjaeg69]

0:14 how is the only way to denmark from germany, through denmark? it will shorten the route to denmarks capitol, sure, but not the route to denmark itself. Zealand is not "Denmark"

[@TheKyosanim62]

Just to the important part of Denmark😊

[@karl7428]

Half of Danes lives on Sjælland. It not just for the capital

[@jimsvideos7201]

The bridge you take going to long way is pretty spectacular.

[@petterbirgersson4489]

They should use the tunnel element factory to manufacture tunnel element for nearby projects once the Fehmarn tunnel is done. Maybe a tunnel between Helsingborg and Helsingør? Or Between Kalmar and the island of Öland in Sweden?

[@matsfrommusic]

Or even between Sweden main land and Gotland though it's ten times longer.

[@jamespppyacek342]

You indicated that the rebar would be tensioned by compressing it. I don't see how that could work. What I understand is that the rebar is put under tension... pulled form the ends... so that when the concrete cures it wants to spring back and so is being pulled "together" by the rebar rods. This would give it tensile strength, as opposed to compression strength, with it already performs pretty well, as you indicated.

[@jonnypi8358]

These people are littery floating massive concrete tunnels, but Americans can't figure out roundabouts.

[@curtisd4857]

Round abouts are so useless and a pain in the ass as a truck driver

[@magneticB]

The BART tunnel in San Francisco Bay was built using the same method actually.

[@sneaky_krait7271]

@@curtisd4857so much better than lights, I almost never have to stop at the intersections because of it. Maybe they should just be bit bigger

[@jankaas2760]

@@curtisd4857 Make it larger! In the netherlands small roundabouts are almost al flat so in the event of an oversized load the truck can just go straight ahead. Also we drive euro trucks that are alot shorter

[@hackia274]

@@curtisd4857they are extremely useful and keep conflicts between vehicles to a minimum.

[@scottsymons6152]

I'm suprised that all of that rebar steel is not coated. Here in the US rebar used in concrete roadway is coated to provide resistance to corrosion. Cement is acidic. It helps control corrosion to keep the strength intact.

[@spyro257]

Denmark has this project going, not all of Europe, but all of Europe is building a high speed train network, that this tunnel is a part of, but Denmark is the one building and paying for this...

[@DerVersteherPlus]

The EU subsidizes the project with 1,3 bn €.

[@spyro257]

@@DerVersteherPlus that's what u call a loan, that has to be paid back...

[@fahrradflucht]

@@spyro257 The project got €540 million in CEF funds from the EU and it also €160 million in TEN-T funds from the EU. So no, it's not all loans (not to mention that even EU loans would likely be at below-market rate terms, which would be a form of funding).

[@spyro257]

@@fahrradflucht it's gonna be the same with the tunnel and bridge to Sweden, which was gonna be paid for by the people using it...

[@fahrradflucht]

@@spyro257 lol. Yes a substantial part of the funding is happening this way, but still it’s not wrong to say that there is EU funding as well. I literally told you the words to Google for if you didn’t know this.

[@Truly_byebye]

Man if you go back just a few years this would have probably costed somwhere in the 50-75 billions that just tells you how fast technology has evolved.

[@panik735]

We built one twice as long 30 years ago and it only cost 15b adjusted for inflation (9b at the time)

[@akyhne]

The price would have been the same 10 or 20 years ago. Not sure what you are talking about.

[@ilesalmo7724]

Also the plans of a tunnel between Tallinn and Helsinki is pretty nuts

[@zxcaaq]

Danish engineers are crazy, everything is well thought out off and it is made to last forever. WOW

[@duckhunter2785]

Drinking game: take a shot everytime the word “element” is used!

[@WowIndescribable]

Absolutely mind-blowing!

[@kenboydart]

This is a great construction job, but it ain't the world's longest underwater tunnel that would be in Japan 33 miles.......

[@JohnMintyTech]

The channel tunnel is longer than this surely.

[@danmcclaren5436]

this was an extremely sesual documentary 👍👍

[@pablomax9376]

As a German, I will just say let's hope that Germany is not in charge of the project, otherwise it will take 5x as long and be 10 x over budget. Then, since it took so long, they will decide that they need a new environmental impact study, at which point they will claim that it's too harmful to nature, and cancel the entire thing.

[@Julleisa]

Denmark is in charge incl. the money part.

[@user-ky6vw5up9m]

@@Julleisa much of the environmental requirements come from the EU which both countries have to comply with.

[@NATIK001]

Denmark is in charge of the project, Germany is only expected to update rail and road infrastructure to the tunnel inside Germany. Denmark couldn't get the project going with Germany for various reasons, which is one of the reasons its taken so long to start it, so in the end the agreement was for Denmark to be 100% in charge and for Denmark to be the country paying (with EU funding as well) in exchange for Denmark getting 100% of toll income from those using the tunnel. Denmark has a good track record of projects like this without a lot of the dithering and second guessing that seem to plague German mega projects. Sweden played a large part in getting this project on the table, and both Denmark and Sweden tried hard to get Germany to agree, at first wanting Denmark and Germany to do a shared project like Denmark and Sweden did for the Øresund bridge, but alas it was not to be.

[@jimdarby1968]

Good stuff. Maybe they couldn't tell you but it would be interesting to find out how they move steel framework for a segment into the casting area and how they move the concrete segments out to the harbor.

[@thormeyer6198]

Correction - Denmark is building the longest underwater tunnel.. 👌👍

[@etherealbolweevil6268]

In what way is this longer than the Channel Tunnel (Dover-Calais)?

[@timballenger1416]

You add all of the elements together. Ba Bam!

[@etherealbolweevil6268]

@@timballenger1416 I reckon if we get the Italians on board we would have our wall finished before the Elona's tunnel got started.

[@mazybee9149]

Wow! 😮 I'm invested

[@hyseb2]

Ah yes, the famous country of Europe

[@TheKyosanim62]

Yeah, just so insanely rich from knowledge based industries. Welcome to Scandinavia🇩🇰🇸🇪🇳🇴

[@johnbaksuds7555]

Lol, not all Europeans will agree on that,

[@lloydprunier4415]

Massive project and they seem to have it all planned out. I was wondering how much the finished segments would weigh and then you stated the 72,000 tons. Earlier in your narration you said a couple of times it was a ton of steel and later a ton of something else. I was thinking this must be AI describing something, but then you brought it all together and it made sense. Really enjoy learning about these things thank you for taking the time to show it to us!

[@arnepoulsen2713]

it is not europe that builds it, but Denmark

[@PrebenH.Andersen]

And Germany

[@johnbaksuds7555]

@@PrebenH.Andersen Not much. They are only building the recieving end on Femern Island. DK is paying and building the tunnel.

[@Tootje1]

They only pay, Netherlands does the rest

[@PrebenH.Andersen]

@@johnbaksuds7555 projektet finansieres gennem lån og betales med brugerbetaling og efterfølgende indtægter tilgår Danmark.

[@PrebenH.Andersen]

@@Tootje1 Netherlands does what?

[@karstenramcke498]

Thank You for this Impression Video

[@johnathanleck4363]

7 billion euros? This would never be done for less than 100billion in the states. Very cool project

[@DirtyIobster]

100 billion is only a start for american lobbyists :)

[@danutavram831]

Because companies, supported by politicians, need to be fed !!

[@k7u5r8t4]

@@danutavram831 In the US it is more about the politicians being OWNED by the corporations. And now with Trump and Musk moving in, they do not even TRY to hide, that Musk and friends OWNS the New Administration!! Several other billionaires get a position in that new Trump "Administration", so they can directly loot the treachery, and get billions in corporate "wellfare". While cutting programs for the less fortunate. And now they talk about buying whole countries, before they are even in Office yet. The oligarchs have clearly taken over now.

[@mikeandrews6543]

First time seeing your channel, very interesting video

[@Actor_bad24IK]

Aaron Witt is slowly becoming my favourite construction youtuber

[@AaronWitt]

you're too kind

[@Actor_bad24IK]

Keep up good work...the visuals are top notch ​@AaronWitt

[@badbilly1083]

How many segments have they installed to date? Has there been any unforeseen problems or unique solutions to overcome them?

[@nicholasarrow2443]

Zero.

[@Glennj1980]

They placed the first 10 or so and currently no problems so all ok.

[@anderslarsen6009]

Only tje first they build on site. They still need to float the first one out, it should have happened in late 2024 but has not happened yet.

[@2771tomek]

On 8:16 ,what you marked are not PT elements but threaded reinforcement ends, covered with a plastic cap. I know what I'm talking about, I've been working there since the beginning of the production of elements, and even earlier.