In drawing up its plans for tunnels, Shetland has taken inspiration from the neighbouring Atlantic archipelago 200 miles to the north west.
The Faroe Islands have been building tunnels since the 1960s and now have more than 20, including four which run under the sea, linking island communities.
The network includes a 7.1 mile (11.4km) tunnel which connects the island of Streymoy to two sides of a fjord on the island of Eysturoy via the world’s only subsea roundabout.
The tunnel’s deepest point is 187m (614ft) below the Atlantic and has halved the driving time between the capital Tórshavn and the islands’ second biggest town, Klaksvik.
Last year the then prime minister of the Faroes, Aksel Johannesen, told BBC News that Shetland could boost growth, revitalise island life and encourage population growth by emulating his country’s tunnel network.
“I think we have learned in the Faroe Islands that investment in infrastructure is a good investment,” he said.
