Eurasia Tunnel, one of Turkey's most visionary mega projects, which will allow automobiles to pass beneath Istanbul's Bosporus Strait, opens Tuesday with the participation of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım.

The two-story tunnel, which is 14.5 kilometer long, including a 5.4-kilometer section under the Bosporus, has been constructed for rubber-wheeled vehicles as a sister to the Marmaray, an undersea rail transport tunnel project, informs Daily Sabah.

It will also reduce travel time from 100 minutes to 15 minutes on a route with heavy traffic. While traffic flow will become smoother thanks to the expansion and regulation of connection roads at the entrance and exit points of the tunnel, the tunnel will also help reduce environmental pollution and noise. 

The Eurasia Tunnel, which started construction in 2011 at a cost of $1.25 billion and is being built 106 meters under the Bosporus, is expected to be used by 100,000 vehicles per day.

Tolls will be $4 plus VAT for automobiles and $6 plus VAT for minibuses in one direction in the first year.