Beacon Hill Tunnel
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Beacon Hill Tunnel
Beacon Hill Tunnel is a tunnel in Hong Kong on the original Kowloon-Canton Railway from Kowloon to Canton, linking Kowloon Tong to its south and Sha Tin to its north, between Kowloon Tong and Tai Wai stations. Services through the tunnel are provided by MTR.
There are two Beacon Hill Tunnels indeed. One is the 1910 tunnel, the Chinese name is 煙墩山隧道. Another is 1981, 筆架山隧道.
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Contents
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History
A team of surveyors were commissioned to survey the route for the KCR British Section in 1905. Two routes have been proposed:
- Construction of a tunnel 1.5 mile (2.4 km) long through Beacon Hill then following the west coast of Tolo Harbour
- Routing through Western New Territories and Castle Peak Bay
Although option 2 was less of an engineering challenge, the overall route was longer, and passed through less economically active areas; therefore option 1 was selected. Works on the 35.4 kilometers (22.0 mi) railway to the border started early 1906. Construction of the tunnel, referred to as Tunnel No.2 in the plan (since it was the second tunnel starting from Kowloon), was the greatest engineering project in Asia of its time.
The tunnel opened with rest of the line in October 1910, together with four smaller tunnels. It accommodated a single standard track with a standard gauge of 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in). It has, however, been notorious for its fume problems throughout its operating life; due to its steep gradient of 1%.
A double tracked, electrified tunnel was built to 30 to 40 metres west of the original one as part of the modernisation of the KCR. Work started in 1978, and was completed by 1981, the railway now the MTR East Rail Line. The original tunnel was closed upon completion of the new tunnel, and is now occupied by a 750 mm diameter town gas pipeline.[1]
Dimensions
First tunnel
- single track.
- 2.2 km long.
- horseshoe shaped, 5.2 metres width by 5.8 metres high above rail level.
- up to 427 metres below ground.
- tunnel lining upgraded in 1982 and 2008.[1]
Second tunnel
- double track.
- 2.3 km long.
- horseshoe shaped, 11 metres width by 9 metres high.[1]
References
- Phillips, Robert J. (1990). Kowloon-Canton railway (British section) : a history. Urban Council.
- ^ a b c "Catalogue of Hong Kong Tunnels (Up to December 2008)" (PDF). Geotechnical Engineering Office, Civil Engineering and Development Department. March 16, 2009. http://www.cedd.gov.hk/eng/publications/geo/doc/HK%20Tunnel%20Cat.pdf. Retrieved 2008-02-05.
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