| has gloss | eng: The Taiwan Strait Tunnel Project is an undersea tunnel or bridge proposed primarily by the Chinese government to link Pingtan in China to Hsinchu in northern Taiwan. It forms part of the "7 longitudinal 7 latitudinal" expressway plan proposed in 2004. However, the project has never been considered realistic because of its staggering cost, technical difficulties, dubious economic benefits, and risks to Taiwanese national security. At nearly 150 km, the proposed tunnel would be nearly 3 times the length of the Channel Tunnel across the English Channel. In addition to the cross-strait tunnel, the Chinese government envisions four other tunnels, between Hong Kong-Macao-Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Zhuhai, Dalian-Yantai, Shanghai-Ningbo, and Guangdong-Hainan. The project also includes the construction of bridges in areas that have technical problems with the rock and soil. Construction has begun on the first tunnel in Xiamen, Fujian. The 9 kilometer tunnel of which 6 of the kilometers is under the sea, is expected to be completed in the year 2010. |
