In Spain all altitudes are compared with the average sea level at Alicante since a lot of years ago. Sometimes they use two levels... one comparing with Alicante and other comparing with sea at Santander.
There is about 1,5 m of difference in those points (Mediterranean and Atlantic)... but if you find in Spain a level measure is always compared to Alicante (I do not know what about Canary islands, Balearic islands, Ceuta and Melilla...).
In all old stations it appeared a signal like this one informing about altitude
National Roads: Katara Pass 1705m (on NR6) - Pisoderi Pass 1420m (on NR2) - Polymylos Pass 1360m (on NR4) - Vytina Pass 1135m (on NR74) - Artemisia Pass 1024m (on NR82).
Motorways tend to avoid high altitudes by cutting through tunnels. I assume that the highest points should be at about 800 - 900m on quite a lot of points on the A2 between Ioannina and Kozani and around Artemisio Tunnel on the A7.
Surfing on the web.... at the end of 19th century and for more than 10 years it was calculated the sea level altitude at Alicante thanks to the tide-meter.
Considering the tools they had, precission was very high.
They started to calculate all altitudes always with that reference (end of 19th century) and had been considered official at all.
Using any computering program today we will have similar altitudes than those calculated more than one century ago.
As it can be though, sea level at Atlantic is upper than in Mediterranean (where water evaporation is highest and it is enough to see ocean current at Gibraltar strait).
This is why they chose a new point in the Atlantic for specific meditions... but in any case, all Atlantic cities will be oficially 1,5m over sea level at least!!!.
^^ Where those tunnels necessary? From the pic it looks like they could have built the motorway without them and without viaducts, just with a little of uphills and downhills...
The initial option was to build the road trough open cuts of 30-50 metres deep and build longer and higher viaducts. As the soil is silt and clay, that appoach would have had a major impact to the landscape. The cut would have been several hundred meters wide. To create a more esthetic solution, they decided to build those tunnels.
In Spain they will never make a tunnel for that type of road.
Furthermore... there are cases when I ask myself why they didn't planned a tunnel somewhere (when more necessary)... and the reason is the cost.
Spain: Already said. But according to Google Earth, the E05 only reaches 1440 meters above sea level. AP-6 climbs to about 1290 meters. When completed, E07 will reach 1280 meters.
And as said, the highest paved road in Europe is not the Restefond pass in France (2802 meters), but the Veleta peak (3367 meters). But that is restricted, so Restefond keeps as winner. I know there is a pass on Canary islands at 2300 meters.
And outside my country, I've read that Chinese will build an expressway up to 5100 meters above sea level. Currently they have one at 3800 meters, and roads up to 6000 meters (Maybe highest in the world?).
And outside my country, I've read that Chinese will build an expressway up to 5100 meters above sea level. Currently they have one at 3800 meters, and roads up to 6000 meters (Maybe highest in the world?).
Highest road *should be* the one leading to Kehlstein (Hitler's Eagle's nest), ca. 1700m, but it is closed to normal traffic and only buses can go up there. This is a picture taken by me at the end of the road (but I did not take the bus, I hiked up there instead):
Highest regular road should be Roßfeld high ring road, ca. 1560 m.
^^ Hungary is probably a country which can afford such a things.
It is same as here, just to make motorway more expensive. :bash:
The new government is doing really well, so far they have saved up to about 500 million € on a on going motorway projects comparing to the old government.
Take a look going down to France because at 2350m there is a kart circuit (Can it be the highest in the world?)
Border is at Pas de la Casa. There is a 3 km tunnel down the pass. Both entrances to the tunnel, west and east are at Andorra, but eastern is closed, closed to border to France and the road is prepared to cross a little French territory to go from Pas de la Casa to the rest of the country of Andorra. It could be possible to do without crossing the border, but there are no a lot of space.
Border custom cabins are some kilometres inside France.
There is an unpaved road that goes up to 3.800 meters in southern Russia, on the flanks of the Elbrus. The paved road ends at circa 2.400 meters at a ski area in the Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria.
No Slovenia yet? Here we go. 600m+ on highways; Karavanke enterance, Postojna Gate and Čebulovica pass. Latest probably around 650. As for (sub)standard paved roads: Mangart ring road: 2000+.
^^ A1 between H4 and Senožeče is 680-700 m according to Google Maps, Vršič Pass is 1,611 m, road to Mangart (cul-de-sac) reaches 2,055 m (all of them paved).
G109 QingZang Highway: Paved. The highest point 5231m at Tanggula pass
I went there for work (vehicle altitude test) in 2004 and reached the point at 4767m (Kunlun Pass).
(elevation profile borrowed from http://www.qhnews.com/)
G219 Xin-Zang Highway: Fully paved since Oct 2013.
Highest point: around 5200m - 5300m at Hongtu Pass (Some said the elevation is 5260m according to GPS while some other claimed it's 5370m)
elevation profile borrowed from Wiki
I drove through this highway in 2010, pictures taken in that trip:
G219 Xin-Zang Highway: Fully paved since Oct 2013.
Highest point: around 5200m - 5300m at Hongtu Pass (Some said the elevation is 5260m according to GPS while some other claimed it's 5370m)
elevation profile borrowed from Wiki
I drove through this highway in 2010, pictures taken in that trip:
Dead-end road to Juvasshytta - 1841 m.
Mountain pass: Sognefjellet - 1434 m (also highest numbered road, the fv 55).
National road: Hardangervidda - 1250 m (rv 7)
E road: Haukeli - 1085 m (E134)
Motorway: Don't know, probably E6 somewhere around Kløfta/Jessheim or E16 close to Gardermoen. Roughly 200 m, though.
I drove along this highway from Shanghai(0km) until Tingri (around 5215km) where I left it for the base camp of the Mountain Everest. The highway ends at China-Nepal border making it 5476km long.
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