Gibraltar Strait Crossing - An Alternative: a Submerged Bridge-Tunnel

For the Gibraltar Strait Crossing, two classical solutions have been under close scrutiny: Excavated Tunnel (54 km long) and Suspension Bridge (30 km long, with many 2,000 m spans). Another, third solution - Suspension Bridge (14 km long with two main 5,000 m spans) - has been also examined. In this article, another solution is proposed - a Submerged Bridge-Tunnel (on the shortest route - 14 km). Its advantages - design and construction time, cost, etc. - are due mainly to 1) eliminating the gravity loads by the hydrostatic buoyancy forces, 2) absence of wind and temperature influences, and 3) absence, entirely or partially, of many preliminary, expensive, and time-consuming studies and investigations.