tunnelling-journal (1)
tunnelling-journal (1)
  • Home
  • Print
    • Subscribe
    • Tunnelling Journal
    • Breakthrough
    • ITA Activity Report
    • A&NZ Journal
    • WTC Preview
    • Media Kit
  • Digital
    • Newsletter
    • E-Shots
    • Products Page
    • Media Kit
  • Conferences
    • BTS Conference and Exhibition
    • Cutting Edge 2021
  • Buyer’s Guide
  • Events Diary
  • Jobs
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Podcast

Home > Sound Transit finishes second Northgate Link light rail TBM drive

Sound Transit finishes second Northgate Link light rail TBM drive

Amanda Foley

Written by Amanda Foley on 13/07/2015 in News

Tagged: underground

In Seattle, the second of two TBMs working on Sound Transit’s Northgate Link light rail extension reached the wall of the future Roosevelt light rail station on July 13, completing the first 1.5-mile segment of a 3.4-mile tunnel that will serve light rail trains from Northgate Mall to the University of Washington starting in 2021.

The 6.4m diameter refurbished Robbins EPBM completed the second of six tunnel drives being mined by JCM North Link LLC – a joint venture of Jay Dee, Coluccio, and Michels – having been launched last November from the Maple Leaf Portal just east of Interstate 5 and south of Northgate Mall.

When the machine finishes boring through the station wall at Roosevelt, it will be refurbished before continuing to the U District station site and later connecting with the completed University of Washington Station.

The other TBM on the contract, a Hitachi Zosen machine nicknamed “Brenda” was previously used on Sound Transit’s University Link 230 contract, was launched from the Maple Leaf Portal last July. That machine reached the Roosevelt site in March and is expected to arrive at the U District site this fall.

Both tunnels are expected to be complete by mid-2016. Cross-passages and tunnel finishes are scheduled for completion in early 2018. When service starts in 2021, light rail trains will enter and exit the tunnels at the Maple Leaf Portal.

Each tunnel boring machine weighs 600 tons and is more than 300 feet long with trailing gear. The cutter heads -the rotating faces of the machine that bore underground – are 21 ½ feet in diameter. By the time tunneling is finished, a total of more than 500,000 cubic yards of soil will have been excavated and over 7,200 concrete rings used to line the tunnels.

When complete, the $2.1 billion Northgate Link Extension will connect the University of Washington Station at Husky Stadium to underground stations in the U District and Roosevelt neighborhood, and to an elevated station at Northgate. The 4.3-mile extension from Northgate will provide 14-minute rides to downtown, seven-minute rides to Husky Stadium, and 47-minute rides to Sea-Tac Airport. Riders from Roosevelt Station will reach the airport in 44 minutes.

Comments:

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search

Digital Edition

More Like This

24/08/2020

Highways England to press forward the LTC and Stonehenge tunnels

Highways England to press forward the LTC and Stonehenge tunnels

  Highways England has unveiled the details of plans for £27.4bn investment in the strategic road network across the country. The…

07/01/2021

Brisbane Cross River Rail TBM ‘Else’ prepares for launch

Brisbane Cross River Rail TBM ‘Else’ prepares for launch

Else, the first of Brisbane’s Cross River Rail’s two 7.2m diameter Herrenknecht TBMs is now underground in the Woolloongabba site’s…

26/08/2020

TBM breakthrough on Turkey’s Bahçe-Nurdaği Railway

TBM breakthrough on Turkey’s Bahçe-Nurdaği Railway

In late July, 2020, a jubilant ceremony marked a milestone for southern Turkey’s arduous Bahçe-Nurdaği High-Speed Railway Tunnel. The first…

  • Contact Us
  • Media Kit
  • Magazine Archive

Newsletter

The latest from the Tunneling Journal direct to your inbox.

Social



Enquiries

TGS Media Ltd
The Old Library
Webster House
Dudley Road
Tunbridge Wells
TN1 1LE
United Kingdom

© Tunnelling Journal. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy / Terms & Conditions. Admin

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkRead more