Tunneling Technologies to Overcome Challenges in Urban Areas

FREMONT, CA: For various purposes, tunneling and underground development in urban areas are on the rise all over the world. It necessitates dealing with complex issues to ensure safe construction while minimizing the effect on existing buildings, structures, utilities, and the general public.

Tunneling in urban areas often necessitates shallow cover construction in complex ground conditions of soft soils or mixed ground, heavy groundwater penetration, and sometimes near large structural elements and heritage buildings. The effect of tunneling on buildings, surface traffic, adjacent businesses, and residents' daily lives is essential.

Recent advancements in tunneling technology, improved protection, reliability in implementation, improved risk management, and the ability to create more giant diameter tunnels in even more challenging geography have enabled the construction of several modern underground facilities that were previously unavailable or risky to construct

Difficulties of Tunneling in Urban Area

Tunneling in a city poses a variety of particular difficulties. Major roadways, possible shallow ground cover, soft ground conditions, and possibly mixed ground, current or abandoned buildings and collapsed buildings, and vast complex networks of wet and dry services are all features of a typical urban environment.Furthermore, the difficulty of introducing tunneling in an urban environment without causing damage to nearby facilities, structures, and services is exacerbated by space constraints.Cut-and-cover infrastructure will exacerbate traffic congestion, necessitate service relocation and help in place, harm businesses, expose the public to noise, dust, and vibration, and reduce people's standard of living while construction is underway.

These issues can be solved using a carefully planned tunneling system, the latest tunneling technology, careful excavation and support sequencing, ground development, and a rigorous instrumentation and monitoring program to detect potential issues early and enforce corrective measures.Tunneling has proved effective in complex urban environments, thanks to a risk-averse approach during the design process and the use of cutting-edge TBM technologies.