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The Tyne Tunnel is the name given to two 2-lane vehicular toll tunnels under the River Tyne in North East England. Completed in 1967 and 2011 respectively, they connect the town of Jarrow on the south bank of the river with North Shields and Howdon on the northern end. The original tunnel was one of three forming the original Tyne Tunnel Project; the others are the pedestrian and cyclist tunnels opened in 1951. The tunnels are downstream and to the east of Newcastle upon Tyne and form part of the A19 road. ==History== A scheme for the construction of a set of three tunnels under the Tyne was put forward by the Durham and Northumberland County Councils in 1937. After prolonged negotiations with the Ministry of Transport, the scheme was approved in 1943. The ''Tyne Tunnel Act'', the legislative instrument necessary to enable the construction of the tunnels, received Royal Assent in 1946. Postwar restrictions on capital expenditure delayed the construction of the vehicular tunnel, but work started on the smaller tunnels for pedestrians and cyclists in 1947. ==Tyne cyclist and pedestrian tunnels== Tyne Cyclist and Pedestrian Tunnel was Britain's first purpose-built cycling tunnel. It runs under the River Tyne between Howdon and Jarrow, and was opened in 1951, heralded as a contribution to the Festival of Britain. The original cost was £833,000〔 and the tunnel was used by 20,000 people a day. It actually consists of two tunnels running in parallel, one for pedestrian use with a diameter, and a larger diameter tunnel for pedal cyclists. Both tunnels are in length, and lie below the river bed.〔 The tunnels are over 60 years old and are Grade II listed buildings. At each end, the tunnels are connected to surface buildings by two escalators and a lift. The Waygood-Otis escalators have 306 wooden steps each, and are the original models from 1951.〔 At the time of construction, they were the highest single-rise escalators in the UK, with a vertical rise of and a length of . In 1992. escalators with a higher vertical rise of and in length were constructed at Angel station on the London Underground. The Tyne Tunnel escalators remain the longest wooden escalators in the world. In a refitting phase the escalators and lift shafts were due to be upgraded by October 2010 to early 2011 at a cost of £500,000. A £6,000,000 refurbishment was due to take place in 2011.〔 20,000 people a month use the pedestrian tunnel. In 2005, The SoundEx filmed a music video to their song Street Freak in the tunnel. The band were permitted to close the cyclist tunnel for two days and use it free of charge to bring the tunnel publicity. In 2012, contractor GB Building Solutions of Balliol Business Park, Newcastle, was appointed to carry out the £4.9 million refurbishment which will include the replacement of two of the original four escalators with inclined lifts and the replacement of the tunnels’ ageing mechanical and electrical systems. The two remaining escalators, which are original and of historical significance, will be opened up to public view and illuminated with feature lighting. New lighting, CCTV, control and communications systems will also be installed, in addition to carrying out repairs to the tunnel structure itself and to the historic finishes within the tunnel such as the tiling and panelling. The concrete floor sections are also to be refurbished or replaced, which will greatly improve the surfaces for cyclists and pedestrians. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tyne Tunnel」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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