More than 1500 tunnellers from 71 countries gathered in Dubrovnik, Croatia from May 22 to 27, 2015. The occasion was the 41st Annual Meeting of the ITA – the International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association – in conjunction with the 2015 World Tunnel Congress.
The Second Midtown Tunnel is an immersed tube tunnel, which will link Norfolk and Portsmouth in the US state of Virginia. The road tunnel will consist of eleven segments, cast in the dry dock in Baltimore County and then transported about 320 km south by sea and into the Elizabeth River to be submerged at depths of up to 29 m.
The new line from Stuttgart to Ulm is part of the new trans-European Main Line from Paris to Budapest. It crosses the Swabian Alb and is divided for planning purposes into the
sections Albvorland, Albaufstieg, Albhochfläche, Albabstieg (Alb foreland, ascent, high plain and descent) and the conversion of Ulm railway station. While the high plain of the Alb is predominantly characterised by open-air line, the sloping sections each side are dominated by long tunnels. The areas have similar geology, with karstified white Jurassic limestone being the most frequent formation. For the construction of a structurally stable and serviceable high-speed permanent way, careful handling of the karst is essential. The article in tunnel 4/2015 presents the concept for karst investigation and treatment for the Alb descent.
The NRLA Gotthard Axis consists, in addition to the Gotthard Base Tunnel, of the 15 km long Ceneri Base Tunnel, the two single-track bores of which are to be augmented by bifurcation structures which will permit additional traffic links. Construction is well advanced; lining installation is already proceeding in parallel to tunnel-heading work, in order that, despite the difficult geological conditions, the still ambitious time-schedule can be met.
The DB Projekt Stuttgart-Ulm GmbH is forging ahead with the construction of the Boßler Tunnel as planned. It is the longest tunnel on the new Wendlingen–Ulm rail route with a length of 8806 m. The tunnel boring machine bearing the name Kätchchen reached the 1000 m mark late in the evening on June 18, 2015 in the eastern bore, which subsequently will house the Ulm–Stuttgart track.
The legal dispute concerning the award of the railway systems for the Ceneri Base Tunnel has consequences. An intensive review by the constructor, AlpTransit Gotthard Ltd (ATG), has concluded in mid-June 2015 that operational opening of the Ceneri Base Tunnel should now be planned for 2020 instead of 2019.
The legal dispute concerning the award of the railway systems for the Ceneri Base Tunnel has consequences. An intensive review by the constructor, AlpTransit Gotthard Ltd (ATG), has concluded in...
As part of the rail upgrading project VDE 8.1, a second two-track bore is required next to the existing Burgberg Tunnel on the 16 km section near Erlangen (completion by 2018, cost about 108 million...
The Deutsche Bahn AG awarded the contract for the Merklingen-Hohenstadt route section of the new Wendlingen-Ulm rail route on the Alb Plateau to a JV comprising the contractors Leonhardt Weiss,...
The TBM named “Kätchchen” used to drive the Boßler Tunnel began its work in mid-April, 2015. The machine built by Herrenknecht first tackled the eastern bore, which will one day accommodate the track running from Ulm to Stuttgart. It advanced from the start-up section at the Aichelberg portal up the Alb towards the access tunnel already produced at Umpfental near Gruibingen.
