The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, announced the bidding for the construction of an underwater tunnel that will connect the city of Santos with the seaside resort of Guarujá, in the state of São Paulo, with an investment of 5.96 billion reais (about 1.02 billion dollars).
The project aims to build the largest underwater tunnel in Latin America connecting Santos, which houses the largest port in Latin America, with the island of Guarujá, one of Brazil's largest beach resorts.
At an event with the governor Tarcísio da Freitas, of the state of São Paulo, Lula specified that the auction for the start of the works will take place on August 1 at the São Paulo Stock Exchange. During the ceremony at Valongo Park, in the Port of Santos, Lula emphasized that the project is historic and that the commitment of the rulers is to serve the population well, regardless of each one's political vision.
The Santos-Guarujá Tunnel will be Brazil's first submerged tunnel, with a length of 1.5 kilometers, of which 870 meters will be submerged, indicated the Xinhua news agency. The project will feature three lanes in each direction, including one exclusively for the Light Rail Vehicle (VLT), in addition to dedicated facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.
Currently, the route between Santos and Guarujá is carried out through a ferry system that transports approximately 23,000 vehicles per day, or by road. Daily, 78,000 people commute between the two cities, and around two million people travel through the nine cities surrounding Santos.
According to a statement from the Brazilian Presidency, an engineering method will be used with prefabricated concrete blocks sunk to the bottom of the canal, at a depth of 21 meters.
