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TBM Stuck on Pittsburgh North Short Connector Project

ENR reports that a Tunnel Boring Machine or TBM is stuck for the second time in two weeks on Pittsburgh’s light rail expansion project dubbed the North Shore Connector Project. As we described in a previous post, the project will consist primarily of a tunnel underneath the Allegheny River.  The drilling began the week of March 3 and has been progressing at a rate of 30-ft/day or 5-ft/day faster than the original goals. Read on for a location map of the project, or download the Google Earth KMZ file showing the project area. (File photo of TBM)

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Utah Company has 7 Western-US Geothermal Projects Under Development

Utah-based Raser Technologies has started development of two additional geothermal projects which will bring the total number of projects under development to seven. There are three projects in Nevada, two in Utah, one in New Mexico, and one in Oregon. The company has initiated approximately 75 MW of geothermal projects since April of 2007. By 2011 they plan to initiate 150 MW of projects per year. Links after the break. (Photo copyright Raser Technologies, Inc.)

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The Most Important Fridge On Earth

Today, Tuesday, February 26, 2008, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault is scheduled to start operating on the remote island of Spitsbergen, Norway in the Svalbard Archipelago.  The location is only about 1000km (625 miles) from the North Pole.  The Global Seed Vault will house duplicates of seeds from known species of plants from all over the world in case a natural or other disaster destroys the original species. [Editor] Read on for more details. Photo by Mari Tefre/Svalbard Global Seed Vault [/Editor]

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Tunnel Proposed to Link Europe and Africa at Straits of Gibraltar

The proposed railway tunnel will link Spain and Morroco underneath the Straits of Gibraltar.  The depth of the straits ranges from 1,000-ft to nearly 3,000-ft. To put that in perspective, the English Channel is only 150-ft deep, and the Chunnel is another 130-ft below the sea floor. (Photo by chodaboy)

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New Cableway System Set For Hoover Dam Bypass

ENR reports that the Hoover Dam Bypass construction is picking up steam again after a 2006 cableway failure. The new cableway system has been completed and is being "vetted". The piers appear to be completed based on recent photos and from my own observations driving by on my way to Vegas at Christmas time. The appear to have completed or nearly completed the skewback foundations as well. (Photo by hometowninvasion)

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Rising Costs and Delays in Seattle Area Wastewater Plant and Tunnels

In keeping with our theme of rising costs on tunnel projects, the Brightwater sewage-treatment plant and treated waste pipeline project in King County Washington (Seattle area) is now up to at least $1.84 billion according to the lead consultant on the project. The treated waste pipeline is 13 to 14-miles long and at depths of 40 to 440-ft! It is being constructed nearly entirely by TBM. One source of delay was due to a tunneling subcontractor  not being able to get parts (ball bearings?) because they were all being requisitioned by the US War Department for use in military equipment in Iraq and Afghanistan. Click through for information sources and links. 

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Pittsburgh PA Light Rail Tunnel Construction and Cost Overruns

The Port Authority of Allegheny County (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) has a major transit improvement project dubbed the North Shore Connector. Its main components are twin bored tunnels 1.2 miles long that will connect the Port Authority’s Light Rail Transit system, the T, 1.2 miles from the Gateway Subway Station underneath Stanwix Street and the Allegheny River to the North Shore. It will travel under the river and provide three new stations and allow for future improvements beneficial to future development and continued downtown revitalization. The $435 million project is making news recently for cost increases, drawing comparisons to Boston’s Big Dig much to the dismay of the Port Authority. Read on for project maps, links and more info. 

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Army Corps Looking for 100 Million Cu Yd of Clay

The US Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans district is looking for an unprecedented 100 Million Cubic Yards of Clay to be used for reconstruction and fortification of levees in the New Orleans area. Once borrow sources are approved by the Corps, they will likely be contracting directly with a USACOE contractor constructing one of the projects associated with New Orleans Hurricane Protection System.  Material specs are USCS classification of CL or CH, <35% sand, PI < 10, organic content < 9%.

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Colorado’s I-70 Could Have Boston’s Big Dig Beat

The planning board for transportation improvements along the I-70 corridor in the Denver area of Colorado is pondering some improvements that, if implemented, could rival Boston’s "Big Dig" for cost. A high-speed train is being considered which alone could run $12 billion.

"A high-speed train is really the long-term solution, and . . . part of America’s long-term future is getting people out of single-occupancy vehicles," said Penny, Frisco town manager and head of the I-70 Coalition. He added that an I-70 project could outstrip Boston’s $14.8 billion "Big Dig."

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Seattle Light-Rail Tunnel Likely to Break Ground This Year

Thanks to approximately $100 million from President Bush’s proposed 2009 budget, the $1.8 billion project creating a light-rail line from downtown Seattle to the University of Washington is likely to break ground some time this year. The project will involve twin bored tunnels on the order of 3 miles in length. It is scheduled to open for use in 2016.

There is another notable tunnel project associated with the Seattle Light Rail, known as the Beacon Hill tunnel which I have blogged about before.

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