Västlänken: Planned Railway Tunnel under the Centre of Gothenburg

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Railway system around Gothenburg

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Overview of the West Link

Blue = concrete tunnel built in fill/soil; red = tunnel built in rock; purple = bridge; blue/red = concrete tunnel in rock; yellow = trough structure

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Quelle/credit: Metro Arkitekter

Illustration of the future Centralen Station

Quelle/credit: Metro Arkitekter

Quelle/credit: Abako Arkitekter

Illustration of the future Haga Station

Quelle/credit: Abako Arkitekter

Quelle/credit: White Arkitekter

Illustration of the future Korsvägen Station

Quelle/credit: White Arkitekter

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Longitudinal profile of the West Link

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Area of investigation for the influence on the groundwater level

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Geological profile along the West Link (red = rock;

green = cohesive soil; yellow = clay; brown = fill).

The blue line shows the water table

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Model of the hydrogeological conditions and the link with different risk objects. See also various geological conditions along the West Link in Fig. 8

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Quelle/credit: Rafael Palomo

Cultural heritage: The County Residence, built in 1648, is one of the city’s oldest buildings

Quelle/credit: Rafael Palomo

Quelle/credit: Kasper Dudzik

Skansen Lejonet, one of two fortresses in Gothenburg, was built in 1687 on the site of several fortifications since the 1300s

Quelle/credit: Kasper Dudzik

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Proposed contracts for the West Link Project

Quelle/credit: Trafikverket

Västlänken – the West Link – is a planned railway tunnel under the centre of Gothenburg. As from 2026 three new underground stations are scheduled to provide increased capacity for commuter rail services and improve accessibility to the city. As commuting times are reduced, the labour market is expected to expand and promote regional growth and sustainable development. Several of the areas passed through by the West Link pose major geotechnical, hydrogeological and technical challenges concerning the protection of the environment and existing buildings. The present report was part of the Swiss Tunnel Congress 2016 conference programme.

1 A growing City in a developing Region

Gothenburg is the second largest city in Sweden and is located in the south western Västra Götaland Region. It is the main transport and industrial region of Sweden and handles a large amount of goods to and from all of Scandinavia. Because of this, the regional infrastructure is an important competition factor for the whole of Sweden.

Population and economic growth are steadily increasing and the economy of the Västra Götaland Region accounts for more than a quarter of Sweden’s exports. The larger region of western Sweden, with Gothenburg at its core, is...