China
Hong Kong – cn/19
Metro
20.11.2008 |
The construction contract for the EUR133 million Lai Chi Kok Transfer Scheme, advertised at tunnelbuilder.com earlier this year, has been awarded to Leighton Asia. The project includes two 4.9 m-diameter storm water drainage tunnels with total length of 3.7 km between West Kowloon reclamation and Lai Chi Kok and Sham Shui Po districts, six intake shafts, a stilling basin, an outfall adit into Victoria Harbour, and 270 m of 3 m-diameter connection adits. Work starts immediately for completion in 2012. More from Quinnie Lee, tel +852 2823 1427, e-mail quinnie.lee@leightonasia.com 47/08..
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Norway
Akershus – no/105
Dovrebanen
20.11.2008 |
Contract valued EUR414,000 awarded by Norwegian Railway Infrastructure Administration to Norconsult AS of Sandvika to provide technical and detailed plans of tunnels for the joint project E6 road and Dovrebanen, lot Minnesund-Kleverud, which includes one twin-tube 0.6 km-long road tunnel and 3.1 km of single railway tunnel over a 17 km-long alignment in Eidsvoll and Stange municipalities. ..
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Norway
Akershus – no/43
Railway
15.11.2008 |
Contract for telecommunications installations for 6.5 km section of new double railway track in Baerum municipality for Lysaker-Sandvika, of which 5.5 km in tunnel, awarded by Jernbaneverket to T Connect AS of Manglerud, Oslo. http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=292852-2008 More from Olaf Bjerknes, tel +47 9943 4144, e-mail olbj@jbv.no 46/08. ..
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Norway
More & Romsdal – no/76
Road
11.11.2008 |
Bemel Norge AS of Majorstuen, Oslo has been awarded the contract to supply ventilation fans to the 5.37 km-long Atlantic Ocean tunnel between Kristiansund and Bremnes on National Road 64 in the value EUR555,000...
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Pakistan
Karakorum - pk/22
Railway |
Pre-feasibility study being undertaken by ILF Consulting Engineers for construction of single track railway line along the Karakorum highway between the end of the existing railway network in the south at Havelian and the border between Pakistan and China near the famous Khunjrab Pass in the north.
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China
Hong Kong - cn/82
West Island Line |
Prequalification underway by MTR for tender reference no 703 for West Island Line SHW to SYP tunnels value EUR30 million with a view to selective invitations to tender being issued in 4Q/2008 for contract award in 3Q/2009. Expressions of interest to Malcolm O’Neill, tel 3921 3383, e-mail moneill@mtr.com.hk Visit www.mtr.com.hk/eng/tenders/new_projects.html 45/08.
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Spain
Andalusia - es/155
Road |
Prior information notice for construction works, value EUR24.86 million, for a undergroung cut-and-cover tunnel from Pabellon Moises Ruiz to Plaza de Barcelona, 1,1 km, with 0.8 m-thick base, 1.0 m-thick walls and 1.0 m-thick roof, on Carretera de Ronda, in Almeria. The works will include intermodal station.
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Safety
Tunnelling safety announcements published by tunnelbuilder are purely advisory, and readers should seek corroboration for themselves, particularly with respect to contract submission deadlines, which frequently change without notice. The following reports are for the current year, and comprise a mix of headline news composed from our own research and inputs submitted by third parties. We take no responsibility whatever for the accuracy or completeness of these reports. Submissions, revisions and enquiries should be addressed to thierry@tunnelbuilder.com. There is no charge for this service. Scroll to the bottom of this page for the archives.
| Canadian Tunnelling Projects Hit Geological Snags |
23.06.2008 |
 Three important tunnelling projects in Canada, namely the Niagara Falls hydropower tunnel in Ontario, the Capilano-Seymour filtration scheme in British Columbia and one part of the York region sanitary project, also in Ontario, have hit snags recently, showing how difficult it is to predict conditions for these types of projects. 26/08. |
| Preparatory Works for Sants-La Sagrera High Speed Rail Tunnel in Barcelona |
16.06.2008 |
Knowing as accurately as possible the characteristics of the subsoil is the first safety guarantee in the excavation of tunnels, according to the Catalonia society of geologists. Extensive geological surveys, but not only, have been carried out to bring the project to a successful end, awaiting the arrival of the TBM in 2009. Read more. 25/08. |
| Sonar Technology for Application in Tunnel Excavation |
16.06.2008 |
Dr Ruediger Giese from the GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam (GFZ) and his team received the “Technology Transfer Award 2008” from the Technology Foundation Brandenburg for the development of a new system for use in tunnel pre-exploration, named ISIS. ISIS is a system for the detection of disturbance zones during tunnel construction. Amberg Technologies and Herrenknecht, the global market leader in TBMs, are among the partners for the market launch of the ISIS system. Read more. 25/08. |
| Aestuver’s fire protection for tunnels |
12.06.2008 |
Aestuver’s brand products for fire protection in tunnels, particularly for traffic usage, are based on glass-fibre-reinforced boards bonded by aerated cement concrete. These are characterised by resistance to water and frost as well as fire, allowing them to be used where exposed to the ‘elements’ for protection against damp and mildew, road thawing salt, and for high mechanical loading, as well as fire resistance. The boards also have high resistance to abrasion. |
| Barcelona Metro Deploys 2,937 Sony Camera Network on Line 9 |
9.06.2008 |
Sony installs 2,937 SNC-CS50P IP network cameras across 50 stations and 48 km of track of Barcelona’s Line 9, Europe’s longest metro line. The line is still under construction. The eastern branches are scheduled to open in March 2010 while the airport section will enter in service in end 2012. 24/08. |
| Researchers Find Potential Path to Improve Radio Communications |
9.06.2008 |
As part of a project to improve wireless communications for emergency responders, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have confirmed that underground tunnels - generally a difficult setting for radios - can have a frequency "sweet spot" at which signals may travel several times farther than at other frequencies. The finding, which uses extensive new data to confirm models developed in the 1970s, may point to strategies for enhancing rescue communications in subways and mines. 24/08. |
| Radio Systems Make European Tunnels Safer |
9.06.2008 |
Radio and video surveillance systems are essential to safety in road and rail tunnels. Deployment of radiocommunication networks in road tunnels is a crucial factor to guarantee the best protection of drivers. Radio communication systems have a key role to play to increase the safety, reliability, and efficiency of roads, railways and metros. 24/08. |
| Nitrogen Dioxide Not Measured Enough in Tunnels |
27.05.2008 |
Carbon monoxide in tunnels is no longer a problem and attention should be focused on nitrogen oxides, according to a conference held on 27th March by France-based Centre d’Etudes des Tunnels (CETU), Sick Maihak and Codel, makers of tunnel sensors and measuring instruments. 22/08 |
| Visualization and Light in Tunnels |
27.05.2008 |
One quarter of all drivers in tunnels are nervous and in almost all cases have an unpleasant feeling. How unpleasant driving in a tunnel is perceived depends mainly on the tunnel length and the brightness in the tunnel. Better illumination in tunnels could diminish the accident risks. At Bartenbach’s light laboratory, a new light emitting diode (LED) system, which is fire-resistant and illuminates in the driving direction. The system will optimally illuminate the vehicles, the interior of the tunnel and the lanes so that drivers will not be dazzled. 22/08 |
| Improving Safety in Lorca Tunnel in Spain |
27.05.2008 |
 The refurbishment, improvement and equipment of the Lorca tunnel on motorway A-7 in the region of Murcia aims at constructing two cross-passages that will be equipped with fire protection systems. The main tunnels will also be equipped with complete safety systems. 21/08. |
| Safety and Security in Roadway Tunnels in the US |
27.05.2008 |
The US National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has issued a report that presents the results of a workshop on research needs for safety and security in roadway tunnels, sponsored by the Transportation Research Board’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program. 21/08. |
| European Tunnel Assessment Programme Finds Worst Results in Road Tunnels in Five Years |
15.05.2008 |
Thirty-one tunnels in eleven European countries were on the agenda of this year's audit of tunnel safety. The inspectors came home with the worst result in five years. This means that every third tunnel failed to the make the grade. The tunnel tests were carried out within the scope of the EuroTAP project. 20/08. |
| Sodi Scientifica Installed Speed Control in Kallang/Paya Lebar Tunnel in Singapore |
15.05.2008 |
With the installation of Autovelox 105 SE cameras in the 12 km Kallang/Paya Lebar Expressway (KPE) in Singapore, Sodi Scientifica reinforces its position as market leader for such tunnel installations worldwide |
| Citilog to Supply AID System to Boston Tunnels |
15.05.2008 |
The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority (MTA) will equip key tunnel infrastructure in Boston with real time traffic management. Across Boston’s Ted Williams tunnel and I-90 and I-93 tunnels, Citilog’s automatic incident detection (AID) system will enable the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority (MTA) to meet federal requirements while enhancing safety, security and traffic flow. 20/08. |
| 13th Australian Tunnelling Conference Underway in Melbourne |
5.05.2008 |
The elite of the world's tunnelling industry is meeting in Melbourne, Australia this week from 4th to 7th May to discuss engineering in a changing environment. With the current high level of tunnelling activity in the country, including the 4.7 km-long Brisbane North South Bypass with two large TBMs, and the Melbourne Water/Yarra Valley Water Northern Sewerage Project with three TBMs, the conference should prove interesting. |
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