LANE TO BUILD TWIN “PALISADES” TUNNELS
- The construction of approximately 1.6km of twin tunnels is planned
- Two TBMs will be used for the excavation, giant mechanical moles that will advance underground
- Completion of the works is expected in 2027
Milan, 22 August 2024 – Two twin tunnels that will help boost the efficiency and capacity of New York City’s rail links. This is what will be achieved by Lane, the American subsidiary of Webuild Group, which has been awarded a contract worth a total of USD 466 million (€427 million), of which Lane will have a 35% share, for the construction of the Palisades Tunnel in New Jersey, USA.
The contract is the first tunnel awarded by the Gateway Development Commission (GDC) as part of the larger Hudson Tunnel Project (HTP), which includes the construction of a new tunnel between New York and New Jersey and the maintenance of an existing tunnel that is more than 114 years old. The Palisades Tunnel is one of three separate tunnels that will make up the HTP, along with the Hudson River Tunnel and the Manhattan Tunnel.
The project, identified as “Package 1A Palisades Tunnel Project”, involves the design and construction of two twin railway tunnels, each approximately 1.6 km long and with an internal diameter of approximately 8 meters. The excavation will be carried out using 2 TBMs, large mechanical moles that will progressively advance underground.
The contract also includes the construction of the western portal of the tunnel, near the Tonnelle Avenue construction site in North Bergen, six transverse connecting tunnels and a shaft in Hoboken, Hudson County. Just over 120 feet deep and almost 120 feet wide, this shaft will be used to remove the TBMs from the subsurface once they have completed their run. The work will be carried out in a joint venture with Schiavone and Dragados and is scheduled for completion in 2027.
Webuild Group is a world leader in underground excavation, with a track record that includes the construction of over 3,400 kilometers of tunnels. In the United States, under the Lake Mead on the outskirts of Las Vegas, the Group has completed the Intake 3 project, designed to restore water to the gaming metropolis, with the construction of a record hydraulic tunnel of over 4 kilometers, dug 200 meters deep in the center of the lake. In Australia, Webuild is currently engaged in the construction of the Snowy 2.0 hydroelectric project, with the excavation of a complex system of underground tunnels thanks to innovative TBMs capable of proceeding even on significant slopes. The Group is also currently working on the Brenner Base Tunnel under the Alps between Italy and Austria which, once completed, will be the longest underground railway connection in the world at 64 kilometers in length (including the Innsbruck hub).
