Age no barrier to safety as Liverpool tunnel tops European league

02 May 2007

Queensway Tunnel in Liverpool has been named the safest European tunnel for its age, by an international inspection team.
The EuropTAP (European Tunnel Assessment Programme) inspection found the tunnel had kept pace with increasingly-demanding safety standards. The inspection noted improvements made to the lighting, power, communications, surveillance and ventilation systems, and the creation of seven new escape refuges.
The Queensway and nearby Kingsway tunnels scored the highest ratings of the UK’s eight major tunnels.
Neil Scales, chief executive and director general of Merseytravel, said: ‘We have invested a great deal to make improvements.’ However, the EuroTAP inspector noted some shortcomings, namely – no automatic detection of traffic incidents; no automatic fire alarm system; no lay-bys or tunnel emergency lane; and a lack of ventilation system or tunnel closure procedures activated automatically when the fire alarm is triggered. Queensway Tunnel, which opened in 1934, is an urban, single-bore, two-way underwater tunnel, 3.24KM in length.

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Age no barrier to safety as Liverpool tunnel tops European league

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