Sonnenberg tunnel
| Sonnenberg tunnel | ||||
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 Sonnenberg tunnel south portal with noise protection structures
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| use | Motorway tunnel | |||
| traffic connection | A2 | |||
| place | Sonnenberg (Kriens) | |||
| length | 1500 m | |||
| vehicles per day | 68,018 (as of 2015) | |||
| Number of tubes | 2 | |||
| cross-section | 86 m² | |||
| construction | ||||
| Client | Federal Roads Office | |||
| start of building | 1971 | |||
| completion | 1976 | |||
| business | ||||
| release | October 26, 1976 | |||
| location | ||||
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| Coordinates | ||||
| South portal (Kriens) | 665042 / 210070 | |||
| North portal (Lucerne) | 665184 / 211840 | |||
Map with all coordinates: The Sonnenberg tunnel is a car tunnel on the Swiss A2 motorway and was also one of the largest civil defense systems in the world. It lies between the connections between Luzern -Zentrum and Kriens on the A2 in Central Switzerland and crosses the Sonnenberg of the same name ( 800 m above sea level ). It consists of two directionally separated tubes 1.5 kilometers in length. Cross connections serve as escape routes into the other tube. This tunnel is one of the few with a negative apex . The maximum speed is 80 km / h. The tunnel is crossed by around 68,000 vehicles every day (as of 2015).
history
After construction began in 1971, the civil defense system was completed in 1976 and opened on October 26, 1976. It was originally intended to provide 20,000 residents of the cities of Lucerne and Kriens with emergency accommodation in the event of war or disaster for a period of two weeks.
Civil defense system
After removing the floor slabs in the tunnel, one and a half meter thick armored doors could be driven out of the wall. The gates, each weighing 350 tons, were designed to withstand the explosion of a nuclear weapon of one megaton (TNT equivalent) at a distance of one kilometer. In the event of an incident, the tunnel would have been divided into various tunnel quarters, rooms and blocks of 64 people each. Overpressure would have ensured that any contamination of the environment would not have been able to penetrate the tunnel. In the event of an incident, beds, washing facilities, toilets and lounges, which were stored in storage rooms, would have been set up in both tubes. For operation, the technical systems such as three 1250 kW generators for emergency power supply , overpressure ventilation and cooling, own drinking water supply using groundwater and treated river water from the Reuss, hot water preparation and internal sewage disposal via tunnel channels to the north portal were between the two tubes .
cavern
In the middle of the Sonnenberg, around the two tunnel tubes, the 20 m high, 37 m long and 16 m wide cavern was built on seven floors. This is connected to the tunnels and forms the logistical and technical center of the large protection room system. It comprised a complete, three-story emergency hospital, two command posts (storage rooms), a news center, a telephone switchboard, its own radio studio, an open-plan canteen, cells for over 250 detainees, bedrooms for the staff, various storage and multi-purpose rooms as well as office space for the police, city and canton administration. The emergency hospital has 336 beds, two operating theaters, sterilization systems and an X-ray department. The cavern itself can be used as a civil defense facility for 2000 people; the entire system including the tunnel tubes was designed for 20,000 people. The cavern was accessible either through the now closed entrance from the tunnel or through an access gallery to a remote side entrance, which is provided with decontamination locks. This part of the civil defense system can be visited on guided tours.
Closure of the complex
During the ant exercise in 1987, when both tunnel tubes were closed to through traffic, it was concluded that the capacity should be reduced to 17,000 people. In addition, those involved in the exercise suffered from bunker fever and were only able to set up 2000 beds in the given time.
After the end of the Cold War , the high maintenance costs of almost CHF 250,000 per year could no longer be justified. After years of discussion, it was agreed in 2005 to partially dismantle and disentangle the facilities and to reduce the maximum capacity to just 2000 people. In 2006 the decision was made to close and dismantle the entire facility. In autumn 2006, as part of the “20,000 in the mountain” project, days of action on the subject of civil protection and underground survival took place, which offered the last guided tours through the entire complex and a broad supporting program on the history and development of the civil protection system in the Sonnenberg tunnel. Since 2008 it has been possible to visit the cavern on guided tours and get an insight into the world of bunkers during the Cold War.
Renovations
In 2003, the south portal was extended as part of the overall renovation of this section and provided with large-scale soundproofing structures in order to protect the numerous residents of the Sonnenberg-Südhang from excessive noise. The tunnel itself was renovated from 2011 to 2013.
Web links
- Unique civil defense system , article in the Neue Luzerner Zeitung, 2006
- The civil defense system Sonnenberg tunnel in Lucerne , In: Schweizerische Bauzeitung, Volume 94 (1976), Issue 46, November 11, 1976, pp. 689-699
- Tour of the Sonnenberg civil defense facility , information page on guided tours of the civil defense facility
Individual evidence
- ↑ Annual results 2015 (XLS; 954 kB) , average daily traffic in vehicles per day (DTV) 2015
- ↑ The witness of 1960s Switzerland: Lucerne's civil defense bunker Sonnenberg ( memento of the original from June 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Article and document collection by Jürg Stadelmann from August 22, 2013, Office for History, Lucerne
- ↑ see weblink tour of the Sonnenberg civil defense system
- ↑ Central Switzerland online (August 18, 2005): The civil defense system in the Sonnenberg tunnel is being massively reduced ( Memento from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Renewal of the Sonnenberg tunnel : 2011–2013 ( memento from June 26, 2012 in the Internet Archive ), website on the “Complete renewal of the Lucerne City Ring” by the Federal Roads Office . Retrieved April 26, 2011.
