History and performance of ventilation systems in road tunnels

Abstract

A synthesis of the history of road and railway tunnel ventilation is described, contemplating some notable tunnels such as the well-known Channel Tunnel, St. Gotthard, Britannia railway bridge, the Chorro, Severn, Mersey, Blackwall, Holland, Queensway and Karawanken; important as far as ventilation is concerned. After a presentation of the different systems used in the ventilation of road tunnels, we continue with the study of how atmospheric conditions can force supplementary ventilation to control the movement of air in tunnels, especially in long tunnels.