“Turkey opens longest twin-tube tunnel in the country, connecting Gümüşhane and Trabzon in 30 minutes”

Turkey has opened the longest twin-tube tunnel in the country, which is one of the few twin-tube tunnels of a similar size in the world, the Haberler news site reported.

The commissioning ceremony of the Zigana Tunnel in the Pontic Mountains, Northeast Turkey, took place in the presence of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday.

With the 14.5 km long tunnel, the one-hour route between the cities of Gümüşhane and Trabzon will be shortened to 30 minutes, and drivers will travel more comfortably and with a reduced risk of accidents.

The “Zigana” tunnel is the third longest two-tube road tunnel in the world. It would be the longest such tunnel in Europe if it were built in the European part of Turkey

“With this tunnel between Trabzon and Gümüşhane, we connect the Black Sea with the historic Silk Road. This tunnel, which makes the Zigana mountain passable, will be one of the symbols of the development of this region of ours”, Erdogan said. He also announced future investments in Trabzon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_rTG5tcd5w

In his speech at the opening ceremony of the tunnel, which took place only ten days before the presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14, the Turkish president did not miss the opportunity for pre-election propaganda.

“The grandchildren of Fatih (Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror) will give an answer on May 14 (the election date). The fellow citizens of the martyr Eren Bülbül (a 15-year-old youth from Trabzon, killed in clashes between the PKK and Turkish security forces in 2017, note ed.) will give an answer on May 14 to those who inflate their sails with the support of the terrorist organization”Erdogan said, apparently referring to the support of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), accused by the government of links to the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), for opposition National Alliance candidate Kemal Kulçdaroğlu.