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Spain, Morocco To Build Undersea Rail Tunnels

Posted by timothy on from the chunupmanship dept.

DoraLives writes "The BBC reports that Spain and Morocco 'have agreed to build a 39-kilometre rail tunnel beneath the Mediterranean Sea, to link Europe and Africa.' and that 'This plan could be put into action as early as next year...' Fairly daunting technical piece of work should they attempt it, but the prospect of an all-rail trip from Edinburgh to Tangiers is intriguing to say the least."

7 of 503 comments (clear)

  1. One Problem... by EvilTwinSkippy · · Score: 5, Informative
    All right, The English channel tunnel made sense. You had 2 countries that regularly traveled via surface craft back and forth. You have 2 large industrial economies on both sides of the tunnel. The route is short enough to make the trip and transfer shorter than attempting the voyage by boat or aircraft.

    Now a tunnel across the Mediteranian is not going to work. First off, Tangiers is not exactly what I would call a "business" destination. Nor is Spain. You have to dig pretty deep on the African continent to find anywhere a typical European traveler would be going. Perhaps I am missing a pent up demand for travel from Africa. It didn't RTFA.

    The next problem is travel time. Sure a ride from spain to Morroco would be a lot quicker via Train. A trip from France to Morroco a bit less so. From Scottland to Morrocco... well, only for the folks who want to do it because they can.

    Finally I would like to note that the 2 countries involved are still involved in a few territorial spats. That is not a recipe for success on a multi-billion dollar project.

    --
    "Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival."
    --Dr.W.Edwards Deming
  2. Does it? by mindstrm · · Score: 5, Informative

    Where did you get that?

    I mean I'm no authority on it.. but Morocco is not really one of the "terorrist hotspots" of the muslim world..

    The King has been very adamant about keeping muslim fundamentalists out of the country. The chiefly muslim population of Morocco are indeed very muslim, wear traditional garb, etc, but are not fundamentalist weirdos.. they respect others, other religions, and generally don't hate westerners.

    Aside from being poor, Morocco was a neat place to visit, and the people were surprisingly well educated about world politics and geography, considering the poverty levels.

  3. $? Re:Bah, that's nothing by randyest · · Score: 5, Informative

    The ministry said that a joint Spanish and Moroccan committee of officials had already agreed a preliminary three-year plan of works to start as early as next year, with an estimated initial cost of $30m.

    Er, "m" in Europe/Africa is 1e6, right? I can't imagine what sort of "preliminary three-year plan of works" in such an Herculean effort could be done for a mere $30 million.

    Look at the big dig in Boston -- a relatively easy task (shorter by far, at least) with initial estimates of $4billion (I think) and 40-50% overruns, I can't imagine much more than breaking ground on either end of this proposed gargantuan tunnel getting done for $30m.

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    everything in moderation
  4. Re:Spain and Morocco? by elite+lamer · · Score: 5, Informative

    Why is the parent modded up so highly? The distance between Spain and Morocco is only nine miles (14 kilometers) at the narrowest point. The Chunnel between England and France is 31 miles long, 23 of which are underwater. This doesn't seem so impractical.

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    Oops!
  5. Re:Spain and Morocco? by syphax · · Score: 5, Informative


    I suspect this is because neither country has a reputation (deserved or not) for incredible timeliness or efficiency.

    --
    Simple Unexpected Concrete Credible Emotional Stories
  6. Holy Shit! Are you serious? by windside · · Score: 5, Informative

    The EU keeps Turkey out of the EU, in large part because Turkey is a Muslim country...

    Actually, it has much more to do with Turkey's incredibly poor record on human rights. A few years ago during the Danish Presidency, the European Council issued a set of requirements called the Coppenhagen Criteria, which basically made up a laundry list of minor atrocities perpetrated/ignored by the Turkish government that would have to be resolved before the country was considered for EU membership.

    It's really easy to make blanket statements about the European community's supposed "intolerance" for the Islamic minority, but the criticism is far from water tight. For example, the mentioned "head scarf" policy, which is being discussed in terms of its enforcement in state-run public schools, also forbids the wearing of "obvious" religious symbols like skull caps and large crucifixes.

    Many Africans enter Spain legitimately - jumping through all the necessary hoops. This in itself is not problematic. The trouble starts when their work Visas start to expire and they realize that the EU's uber-flimsy border control allows them to leave Spain and bounce around other countries in continental Europe almost indefinitely. The proposed rail link would have little or no impact on this problem because it deals with a different set of borders.

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    ...Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.
    Churchill
  7. Re:What about the Track Gauge?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative
    Spain uses a wider gauge than the rest of Europe
    This is no longer true. Trains in Spain have, since the end of the Franco era, switched over to a more standard size. Trips from Paris to Madrid and Barcelona run without stops across the borders, and use the same tracks commuter trains run on. I don't see this as a problem. What might pose a problem is the track gauge in Morocco, though I have no knowledge of that at all.