The first elements of the 9.84m (32.3ft) diameter Caterpillar mixed face EPBM, which will be used to excavate the 2km (1.25-mile) long bored tunnel section of the new Evergreen LRT Line, have now begun to arrive at the project’s TBM launch site on the west side of the Barnet Highway, in Port Moody, Vancouver, Canada. Assembly will take a couple of months.
The TBM is expected to commence excavation in February 2014, traversing geology comprising tills and glacial deposits, including boulders with maximum UCS of 350MPa. The machine has been designed to withstand pressures of up to 6 bars.
On January 29, Canada’s Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure announced the official award of the CA$889 million contract to design, build and finance Vancouver’s Evergreen Line to EGRT Construction (see “SNC-Lavalin selected for Vancouver’s Evergreen Line”). The consortium, led by SNC-Lavalin, includes Graham Building Services, International Bridge Technologies, Jacobs Associates Canada, Rizzani de Eccher, SELI Canada, and MMM Group.
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The project will link the cities of Burnaby, Port Moody and Coquitlam with an 11km (6.8-mile) advanced light rapid transit line between Lougheed Town Centre in Burnaby and Douglas College in Coquitlam. The components of the project include elevated and at-grade guideways, the 2km (1.25-mile) long tunnel, seven stations, power substations, train operating systems, parking facilities, and a vehicle storage and light maintenance facility.
“TransLink is very excited to see construction of the Evergreen Line progressing,” said Ian Jarvis, TransLink’s Chief Executive Officer. “Transit use in Metro Vancouver continues to surpass yearly records. The Evergreen Line SkyTrain extension will provide a new and efficient service to improve community connections and meet the transportation needs of our growing region.”
The estimated project cost is CA$1.43 billion, with the Government of Canada contributing up to CA$424 million ($350 million from the Building Canada Fund, $67 million from the Public Transit Capital Trust Fund, and $7 million from the P3 Fund), the Government of BC contributing CA$586 million, and other partners contributing CA$21 million. TransLink is contributing the remaining CA$400 million and will operate the system when it opens.
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