A $20 trillion tunnel linking New York and London?

12.14.24

Winners of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards, why you shouldn't gift-wrap methamphetamine, plus infrastructure megaprojects around the world.

Here's the latest in travel.

By Maureen O'Hare

🚄 Bridge and tunnel crowd

(semakokal/iStockphoto/Getty Images)

There's been a whole bunch of international infrastructure projects in the news this week, with a strong focus on digging.

Busy beavers and merry moles have been chattering about resurfaced plans for a $20 trillion transatlantic tunnel that could theoretically link London and New York in just an hour using vacuum tube technology. That's 3,000 miles of burrowing, mind, which Newsweek estimates could take the best part of a millennium if construction proceeded at the same rate as Europe's Channel Tunnel.

In plans that are actually happening, Norway broke ground last month on its Rogfast project, which promises to be the world's longest, deepest undersea road tunnel. Elsewhere in northern Europe, the world's longest road and rail tunnel, the Fehmarnbelt Tunnel between Denmark and Germany, is slated to open in 2029.

Southern Europe isn't shy of a project or two, either. Construction of a new bridge linking Greece and Turkey might be closer to getting underway, the Greek Reporter said Friday.

Over near the western end of Europe, the UK is busy building one of the world's most expensive railway projects, known as HS2 (High Speed 2), which now costs an almighty $416 million per mile. However, many people think it's pointless.

That comes a few years after the UK resurfaced plans for what would have been one of the world's most ambitious bridges, linking Britain and Ireland. It was to cross just a 12-mile stretch, but the waters were deep enough to submerge the Eiffel Tower. Then there was the matter of all the radioactive waste and unexploded munitions. Unsurprisingly, plans were dropped.

🧳 Baggage blues

A top musician who played at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was forced to cancel a concert this week after Air Canada refused to give his multi-million-dollar cello a seat on the plane.

For others, the trouble only starts at the baggage carousel, although there's progress on easing some of the pain of that. United Airlines has rolled out a new way to track lost luggage with AirTags, with users being able to share location information directly with the airline. Other carriers, including Delta, Lufthansa and Qantas, are set to follow suit.

Finally, Japan Airlines has announced a baggage delivery service for travelers that will allow luggage to be dropped off at customers' hotels for a fee. The idea is to reduce overcrowding on Tokyo's public transport.

🎄 Naughty or nice?

It's always a bad idea to put wrapped Christmas presents in your airplane luggage – if they raise concerns with airport security, they're likely to be unwrapped.

It's an even worse idea when the "presents" are actually 10 kilos of methamphetamine, as happened at a New Zealand airport this week.

This Christmas, we hope that your holidays are not felonious, but felicitous — like American Jennea and Dutchman Arthur.

Jennea's flight from Mozambique was delayed and she missed her train out of London to see her loved ones for Christmas. Then she met her future husband on the platform.

Should you have the misfortune of finding yourself similarly in the winter chill this holiday season, but without the comfort of a lover's hand to hold, you can always console yourself with a pair of heated gloves.

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🚅 High-speed Hong Kong

Hong Kong's new high-speed sleeper trains launched in summer 2024. CNN took a trip on the new 155 mph service from Beijing.

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👀 In case you missed it

A picture of a stuck squirrel won the 2024 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.

Let's hope it doesn't go nuts with the winnings.

A Bitcoin millionaire hid $2 million in treasure across the United States.

Here's how to find it.

A 2022 law change made thieving easier for Venice pickpockets.

Meet the 58-year-old woman whose mission is to hunt them down.

In China, people are hiring "climbing buddies" for big money.

The more attractive they are, the higher the price.

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