Colombia tunnel construction contract commencing

Driving work has commenced for Colombia’s Toro Tunnel project. The tunnel will measure 9.8km long and is located in Colombia’s Antioquia Department, with the completion expected in 2022. The project is costing US$650.5 million and the link is intended to provide a link between the Autopista al Mar 1 and Autopista al Mar 2 highways. When complete the tunnel will also cut the travel time between Medellin and Uraba to four hours.
February 5, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Driving work has commenced for Colombia’s Toyo Tunnel project. The tunnel will measure 9.8km long and is located in Colombia’s Antioquia Department, with the completion expected in 2022. The project is costing US$650.5 million and the link is intended to provide a link between the Autopista al Mar 1 and Autopista al Mar 2 highways. When complete the tunnel will also cut the travel time between Medellin and Uraba to four hours.


The tunnel forms part of a wider project to improve infrastructure links in Antioquia Department, with work to 18 tunnels and 30 bridges planned to be complete by 2028. Construction for a stretch of road from Santa Fe to the start of the Toyo Tunnel is expected to start in 2019. The tender for this stretch will be held shortly and will be managed by Colombia's National Road Institute (2812 Invias). The infrastructure programme also includes carrying out road works from Giraldo to Canasgordas, with this due for completion in 2023.

Construction of the La Quiebra tunnel, also in Antioquia department, is now underway. This work is costing $223.5 million and the tunnel forms part of the Vias del Nus road project. The tunnel will measure 4.1km long and will cut journey times from Porcesito to Cisneros by 30 minutes when it is complete. The road project includes a 24.3km-long dual-carriageway between Pradera and Porcesito and the addition of a third lane along 2.7km at San Jose del Nus-Alto de Dolores road. It also includes rebuilding a 35.6km section from Cisneros to Alto de Dolores. Once the project is complete it will boost travel connections from Medellin to Valle de Aburra, reducing the journey time from 3.5 hours to 2 hours.

Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Speed and precision make for perfect tunnelling combination
    May 21, 2014
    Speed and precision have been the hallmarks of a number of major road tunnelling projects across the globe over the last 12 months, as the latest sector equipment from leading manufacturers has found itself in high demand. Guy Woodford reports Herrenknecht tunnel boring machines (TBM) have been busy tunnelling under major Chinese rivers, demonstrating phenomenal speed, top safety levels and extreme precision while playing a key role in the construction of road tunnels in the Yangtze River Delta. The Yang
    Read More
  • Stockholm’s new bypass
    March 8, 2021
    Tunnels make up 18km of the 21km of the Swedish capital’s E4 Bypass mega-project. It will have taken 15 years from start to opening in 2030, if all goes well
    Read More
  • Nepal plans road infrastructure expansion
    March 12, 2014
    Major road expansion is planned for Nepal, but will face huge challenges due to the country’s geography - Mike Woof reports, with local information from World Highways' Nepal correspondent, Ram Krishna Wagle The tiny, landlocked nation of Nepal lies sandwiched between two of the world’s largest countries, China and India and maintains good relations with both. Politically Nepal has strong links with China, while culturally its ties are close with India and these relationships work both ways. Despite bein
    Read More
  • Colombian dual carriageway project tender
    July 29, 2022
    The tender process for a Colombian dual carriageway project is underway.
    Read More

Highlighted Content