The project, which also involved construction of three new stations, will allow the number of trains on the Gothenburg – Malmö main line to increase from four per hour to 24. The tunnel will open to traffic on December 13 and train operators will immediately double the number of trains on the route.

The construction of the tunnel has been beset with problems. By 1997, only one-third of the tunnel had been constructed due to difficult ground conditions and work was halted that year because of environmental concerns over falling groundwater levels, which have since recovered. Work on the project resumed in 2003.

The project has cost SKr 10.8bn ($US 1.3bn) at 2008 prices and was partly funded by the European Union through the Trans-European Transport Network scheme.

Hallandsas opening2