German government has on Friday, passed its approval of $8 billion road and rail tunnel, which would link Germany to Denmark, despite of environmental objections.
The tunnel which would connect the island of Fehmarn of the Germany to the island of Danish of the Lolland, was of 19 kilo metres (11.8 miles), was due to get completed in 2024, but then was delayed because of environmental protests in the country.
According to news reports, Fehmarn island was already connected to the Germany mainland by road, and the new connectivity will greatly expand and speed up its road and rail connections from the cities of Germany i.e., Hannover, Bremen and Hamburg to Copenhagen, the Danish capital, and also the Swedish city of Malmo.
The road and rail connectivity was a part of European Union-fund. The project costs 52.6 billion Danish crowns ($8.1 billion) which was comprised with a two-track of railway line and a four-lane motorway.
The company Femern A/S has undertaken the project. It has 14 days in order to review the whole approval, which was presented by the transport minister of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, before it get signed.
In an official statement, the project director at Femern A/S Claus Dynesen said: “This is the result of several years of cooperation between the parties involved in Denmark and Germany.”
Earlier, the application was first submitted in 2013 and went through two rounds of public consultation in the country. The director said the decision to pass the application could be appealed in the federal administrative court of Germany.