The Government of São Paulo is presenting the Santos-Guarujá Immersed Tunnel Project during an international mission to Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway, with the aim of attracting private investment for structural works in the state. One of the main benefits of the project is the reduction in crossing times between the two municipalities to up to five minutes, by means of a dry connection that is unprecedented in Brazil.
Currently, around 21,000 vehicles, 7,700 cyclists and 7,600 pedestrians cross the channel between Santos and Guarujá every day by ferries and small boats. The tunnel will be 1.5 km long, 870 meters of which will be underwater, with three lanes per direction, one of them adaptable to the Light Rail Vehicle (LRV), as well as a cycle path and pedestrian crossing.
The structure will connect the Outeirinhos and Macuco regions in Santos to the Vicente de Carvalho neighborhood in Guarujá, and is designed to integrate public transport systems and reduce pollutant emissions by replacing part of the journeys currently dependent on combustion-powered waterways.
With an expected investment of R$6 billion, the project will be carried out through a public-private partnership (PPP), with a 30-year concession for construction, operation and maintenance.