Western Scheldt Tunnel

The Westerscheldetunnel is a 6.6-kilometer-long tunnel under the Westerschelde between Ellewoutsdijk and Terneuzen, making it the longest road traffic tunnel in the Netherlands. The tunnel is operated by NV Westerscheldetunnel, which is 95.4% owned by the Ministry of Transport and Water Management (as a shareholder of the Dutch state) and 4.6% by the province of Zeeland. The tunnel opened on March 14, 2003. Since then, the ferry services Vlissingen - Breskens and Kruiningen - Perkpolder operated by the Provincial Steamship Services in Zeeland have been discontinued. The Westerscheldetunnel is a bored tunnel consisting of two tubes that were excavated with a tunnel boring machine. Each tube has space for two lanes. There is no emergency lane. Every 250 meters, the tunnel tubes are connected by cross-passages. Normally, the doors to the cross-passages are locked, but in the event of an emergency, the doors are automatically unlocked. Traffic in the left lane of the other tunnel tube is halted so that people can safely walk into the other tunnel tube. The Westerscheldetunnel is 6.6 km long and has a 1200-meter section on the south side with a gradient of 4.5%. The maximum driving height is 4.30 meters. Toll for this tunnel is collected in Ellewoutsdijk for both directions. The tunnel is not suitable for pedestrians and cyclists. However, they can use the bus service through the tunnel. Cyclists can travel from the toll plaza in Ellewoutsdijk to the bus station in Terneuzen. The service is operated by Connexxion.

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