The Bering Strait is the point where Russia and the US are at their closest. The Strait runs between Siberia and Alaska and the distance between the two continents is only about 65 miles at the Strait. This was one of the places during the Cold War when tensions between Russia and the US were at their highest that saw the militaries of both countries at the ready in case one or the other attacked.
With the Cold War long behind us, a new plan to connect Russia and the US via a long railway tunnel underneath the waters of the Bering Strait has been green lighted. The project is projected to cost $10 – $12 billion for the 65-mile long tunnel construction alone with the complete project expected to run in the $65 billion range. The tunnel is expected to take about 15 years to complete and when finished it would allow travel by rail from London all the way to New York City.
The thought of one of those high-speed trains zipping you across the world is very interesting. One of the most interesting notions of the tunnel is the commerce it would allow with the ability to transport millions of pounds in goods between Europe and the US each year by rail, which is the cheapest way to transport all sorts of goods today. The tunnel will use wind power and tidal power along the length and that power generated could be shot back to Europe and the US. [via SlashGear and Inhabitat]
Now the question is how much do you think the Russians can get the broke America tax payer to invest? Another question might be will any future trade agreement be with these deals. Many in America have complained of the NAFTA Superhighway and how it is being built with Mexican labor. What would the labor agreement be on the Alaska side of the tunnel?
