The Havana Tunnel, one of the four Wonders of civil engineering existing in the capital of all Cubans, celebrates its 64th anniversary this May 31.

This ingenious project was conceived to facilitate traffic to the East and from the East towards the capital and Pinar del Río, with the aim of avoiding the central highway and not bordering the Bay, which involved more than half an hour of travel, on highways very narrow.

The underwater lane, which is located at a depth of between 12 and 14 meters below the bottom of the Bay of Havana, allows the passage of four traffic lanes, each 3.35 m wide and 733 m long and with a length total connection work of more than 1,600 m, which also includes the West (Havana) and East (Toll Zone) accesses.

It was built by the French company Societé de Grand Travaux de Marseille in thirty months, between 1957 and 1958, together with North American specialists, under the technical direction of Cuban engineer José Menéndez Menéndez. His technical letter describes it as a system of reinforced concrete pipes capable of supporting the weight of thousands of tons of water, which makes it a safe and efficient medium.

As complementary elements of the tunnel, two tanks with a capacity of 500 m3 each were built for the accumulation of rainwater, safety gates against sea level, interior lighting and ventilation, as well as fire protection.

The other constructions considered jewels of civil engineering in Havana are the Albear Aqueduct, a masterpiece of 19th century engineering, which, more than a century after its construction, continues to provide its services to the inhabitants of the capital; the Havana sewerage siphon, which is among the most relevant engineering commissions carried out in Cuba and which is located under the entrance channel of the capital's bay, very close to the Havana Tunnel, as well as the attractive FOCSA building with its 121 meters above street level, built in the Havana neighborhood of Vedado, about 300 meters from the boardwalk.