Zigana Tunnel, Turkey's and Europe's longest double-tube highway tunnel, was put into service on Wednesday, May 3, with the participation of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Adil Karaismailoğlu, Ministers, bureaucrats, contractor company representatives and our citizens. Our Deputy Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Enver İskurt, who was present in the tunnel area, stated that they opened the Maçka-Karaair Road together with the General Manager of Highways Abdulkadir Uraloğlu and the President Zigana Tunnel, which was connected live to the accompanying delegation.
President Erdoğan said, “The Zigana Tunnel was built as the 3rd in the world and the longest double-tube highway tunnel in Europe and our country. With this tunnel between Trabzon and Gümüşhane, we connect the Black Sea to Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia, and from there to Iran and the Middle East, namely the Historical Silk Road. The design, project and construction of this tunnel belong entirely to our engineers.” said.
“This tunnel, which makes Mount Zigana impassable, will be one of the symbols of the development of our region in every field.” Emphasizing the benefits of time, fuel and carbon emissions, our President stated that they have opened a new windpipe between the Black Sea ports and the south of our country with the tunnel.
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Adil Karaismailoğlu said, “We built the Zigana Tunnel with a length of 14,5 kilometers with double tubes. We also built the 17-kilometer-long Maçka Road as a divided road. This project is one of the most important stages of our vision and work that connects the world to Turkey.” he said.