The first undersea tunnel in China is expected to begin construction this May in Xiamen, in east China's Fujian Province. It is scheduled to be completed in 2010, according to the Xiamen Municipal Development and Reform Commission.

The undersea tunnel is also the first of its kind designed by domestic experts.

A feasibility report about the tunnel, also known as the East Passage Project, was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission earlier this month.

Connecting Xiamen Island and the neighboring mainland, the tunnel will be 9 kilometers long with its 6-kilometer main part under water. The deepest part will be about 70 meters underwater. The tunnel will be six lanes in two directions and have a top speed of 80 kilometers per hour, according to the construction plan.

The project will cost 3.25 billion yuan (US$391.5 million), the commission said.

The city's third passage linking Xiamen Island with the mainland, the tunnel will connect to highways in the area. It will join Xiamen Bridge and Haicang Bridge respectively situated in the north and west of the island to form a new transport network.

Upon completion, the tunnel is expected to divert about 30 percent of the traffic flow from the two bridges, said the commission.

The feasibility study for the project was approved last April by experts in relevant fields including bridge and tunnel construction, mechanics and electronics, geology, oceanology, hydrology and economics.

Taking into account the sustainable development of the city, designers of the tunnel have seen to it that enough development space will be left for future exploitation of the deepwater coastline and sea resources.

The tunnel construction technology to be adopted in the project is also considered good for the protection of the environment and rare species such as the lancelet in the sea area.

It is also required that construction work should avoid adverse impacts on the current round-the-clock traffic and ensure the laying of undersea tube and high-tension cables during the construction, said Zheng Shanjie, director of the municipal Development and Reform Commission.

(China Daily February 23, 2005)