Thursday, October 2, 2008

Western Harbour Crossing

The Western Harbour Crossing is a dual 3-lane immersed tube tunnel in Hong Kong. It is the third tunnel to cross Victoria Harbour, linking the newly reclaimed land in West Kowloon with Sai Ying Pun on Hong Kong Island. It was constructed by the Western Harbour Tunnel Company on a 30 year franchise build-operate-transfer model proposed by the Government.

The Western Harbour Crossing is part of the Airport Core Programme which was a comprehensive set of infrastructure projects associated with the at Chek Lap Kok. The tunnel carries on the designation from the West Kowloon Highway, and connects to on Hong Kong Island.

Transport


Bus routes which use the crossing:
*Kowloon Motor Bus/New World First Bus: 904, 905, 914, 914X, 948, 948P
*New World First Bus: 970, 970X, 971
*: A10, A11, E11, R11, A12, 930, 962, 962A, 962B, 962C, 962S, 962X, X962, 967, 967X, 969, 969A, 969B, 969P, 969X, 973, 973P
*Kowloon Motor Bus: 373A, 934, 935, 960, 960A, 960P, 960S, 961, 968
*Overnights: N962, N969

Tseung Kwan O Tunnel

Tseung Kwan O Tunnel is a 900-metre tunnel beneath Ma Yau Tong in Hong Kong. Part of , it links ''Sau Mau Ping'', Kwun Tong of East Kowloon and the new town of ''Tseung Kwan O'' , Sai Kung in New Territories. It was used by 68 000 vehicles daily in 2000.

This tunnel is connected to ''Tseun Kwan O Road'' on the Kowloon side along with its toll plaza, and Tseung Kwan O Tunnel Road on the Tseung Kwan O side.

Tate's Cairn Tunnel

Opened on 26 June 1991, Tate's Cairn Tunnel is a four-lane tunnel in Hong Kong. Constructed as part of , it links Diamond Hill, Eastern Kowloon and Siu Lek Yuen, Sha Tin in the New Territories.

Its toll plaza is situated on the Sha Tin side, leading to Tate's Cairn Highway, Sha Lek Highway and various local roads. The tunnel joins the Kwun Tong Bypass and is connected with Lung Cheung Road and several local roads on the Kowloon side.

Tate's Cairn Tunnel is the longest road tunnel in Hong Kong, with the northbound tube having a length of 3,913 and southbound tube having a length of 3,945m.

Tunnel facilities


*dual-tube, 4-laned
*9 manual toll booths and 5 autotoll booth
*24 cross passages
*160 fire alarms
*156 emergency telephones
*320 fire extinguishers
*82 hose reels
*78 hydrants
*18,268 fluorescent tubes
*3,277 tunnel wall panels
*44 CCTVs inside tunnel tubes
*10 CCTVs outside tunnel tubes
*16 ventilation fans

The BOT Concept



The Tate's Cairn Tunnel is a BOT infrastructure project funded 100% by the private sector. The BOT franchise was awarded to the Tate's Cairn Tunnel Company Limited for a period of 30 years by the Hong Kong Government in 1988.

As suggested by the term BOT , the Tate's Cairn Tunnel Company Limited is responsible for the construction and operation of the Tunnel until the end of the franchise period. During the franchise period, the Company is allowed to earn a reasonable but not excessive return through the collection of tolls. On expiration, the tunnel will be transferred to the Government. The statutory requirements to the Company is defined by the Tate's Cairn Tunnel Ordinance.

BOT projects are embodiments of public/private co-operation for a better Hong Kong. To resolve the conflict between the demand for a better road network and the Government's desire to maintain fiscal prudence, private sector participation in transport infrastructure development provides a solution. Flow of private capital through BOT projects allows for rapid improvement of transport infrastructure in Hong Kong without massive public expenditures. Successful public/private cooperation in infrastructural projects enables the development of a better Hong Kong.

In Hong Kong, examples of major road projects built using the BOT model are Tate's Cairn Tunnel, Eastern Harbour Tunnel, Western Harbour Crossing, Route 3 and Cross Harbour Tunnel.

Tai Lam Tunnel

Tai Lam Tunnel is a dual 3-lane tunnel in Hong Kong. The tunnel and its highway connection itself are also known as Route 3 , which is 10.1 km long connecting Au Tau, Yuen Long and Ting Kau, Tsuen Wan. The tunnel is 3.8 km long and is part of the Tsing Long Highway.

The tunnel acts as a major access to the northwest part of New Territories and mainland China from Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It greatly eases the stress on the overloaded Tuen Mun Road brought by the rapid development of new town of , and , and the drastic growth of traffic on Lok Ma Chau access to mainland China.

Bus services



Kowloon Motor Bus, and Long Win Bus operates bus routes that travel through the Tai Lam Tunnel. Discount is available to passengers travelling between designated bus routes.

* Kowloon Motor Bus: 68M, 68X, 69M, 69P, 69X, 251M, 263M, 264M, 265B, 265M, 265P, 268B, 268C, 269B, 269C, 269D, 269M, 279X, 373A, 968, N269, N368
* Citybus: 967, 967X, 969, 969A, 969B, 969P, 969X, N969
* Long Win Bus: A43, E34, E34P, E34S

Shing Mun Tunnels

Shing Mun Tunnels connects the new towns of Tsuen Wan to the west and Sha Tin in the eastern New Territories of Hong Kong. It is part of . Opened in 1990, it is made up of two sections, rach with twin 2-lane tunnels . The westerly pair passes through Ma Tsz Keng near Shing Mun Reservoir, where it gets its name from; the easterly pair passes through Cham Shan and is linked to the westerly pair by two viaducts over Lower Shing Mun Reservoir. The toll plaza and bus interchange is located outside the Tsuen Wan end of the tunnel.

The tunnel leads to Cheung Pei Shan Road and connects Wo Yi Hop Interchange in Tsuen Wan, and Shing Mun Tunnel Road in the east which links Tai Wai Road and ends at Tai Po Road.

Sha Tin Heights Tunnel

Sha Tin Heights Tunnel is the newest tunnel in Hong Kong. It is part of . The tunnel spanned from a toll plaza in Sha Tin Valley through Sha Tin Heights to Tai Wai. The toll plaza is also connected to Eagle's Nest Tunnel, a tunnel to Cheung Sha Wan and Lai Chi Kok. The Tai Wai entrance is near Pak Shek, with roads connected to Che Kung Mui Road and Tai Po Road. The tunnel toll free and is opened 24 hours a day.

The Sha Tin Heights Tunnel project involves the construction of 0.9km of road tunnel and a toll plaza, along with connecting roads to Road T3 and slip roads to Che Kung Miu Road. The project has an estimated cost of HK$1.308 billion. The excavation of the tunnel was started in November 2002 and completion is scheduled for November 2007-early 2008. The project is being undertaken by the Civil Engineering and Development Department in Hong Kong. The project includes:

*Site formation, drainage, geotechnical and landscape works for the toll plaza
*0.9km of three-lane twin-bore tunnel underneath Sha Tin Heights
*Dual, two-lane at-grade carriageway of 0.7km linking the Sha Tin Heights Tunnel and Road T3
*Slip roads connecting to Che Kung Miu Road
*Construction of noise mitigation measures

Nam Wan Tunnel

Nam Wan Tunnel is a tunnel currently under construction in Hong Kong. The road tunnel, which will form an important part of the HK$15bn Route 8, linking Tsing Yi and Sha Tin in the city, has been under construction since 2003 and is due to be completed by 2007.

The twin-tube tunnel, being built by the Hong Kong Highways Department, will be 1.2km long and have three lanes in either direction in the southern part of Tsing Yi from Sai Tso Wan to Nam Wan Kok. It will provide linkage between the eastern part of the New Territories and Chek Lap Kok International Airport.

On completion, the tunnel will be toll-free. The twin tunnels are 15m wide with 12 cross passages emergency walkways, and a portal building at each end and will be formed by blasting in granite and volcanic rocks.

Nearly all of the 550,000m? of tunnel spoil will be reused in the Penny's Bay reclamation project or processed into aggregates at a local quarry. Spoil will be taken away by a fleet of trucks, one leaving the site every 100 seconds during the working day from 8am to 7pm.

Environmental measures



Environmental measures taken to minimise noise and nuisance to road users and the public include: a 7.5m-tall noise barrier, and continuous monitoring to ensure noise and vibration limits are not exceeded during tunnel blasting; blast doors for any blasting conducted near roads; and 40 water sprinklers and washing facilities at all exits for vehicles to use before leaving the construction site.

Structure



The tunnel cross section will be in the form of an arch. The approximate height and width of the arch is 11.2m and 15.3m respectively. The geology comprises coarse volcanic ash tuff on the west side and medium grained granite on the eastern side. Both of these lithologies are intruded by Rhyolite dykes together with some porphyrytic granite and occasional basalt dykes.

The two tubes are being constructed using the drill / blast method. Temporary support for the tunnels will be provided by rock-bolts. Permanent support will be provided by a concrete lining of varying thickness depending upon the stability of the ground.

Three main types of support will be used: 400mm un-reinforced, 500mm un-reinforced, and 600mm reinforced.

Contractors



Ove Arup and Partners Hong Kong Ltd were the designers of the tunnel and Gammon Skanska and Skanska International Civil Engineering joint venture are the main construction contractors . The contract also covers construction of tunnel control buildings and the 1.4km dual three-lane West Tsing Yi Viaduct.

The cost for the tunnel has been estimated at HK$470m and HK$83 million . Fl?kt Woods is providing the ventilation system for the tunnel.

COWI has provided specialist assistance to Ove Arup and Partners with the design of electrical and mechanical systems for the Nam Wan Tunnel and two adjoining viaducts.

Ventilation



Fl?kt Woods is providing the ventilation solutions by supplying three immense fans for the tunnel. The axial flow fans measure 2.65m in diameter, are powered by 900kW motors and run at pressures of 3,800Pa.

Fl?kt Woods will run one of the fans continuously to self destruct, to prove their capability of withstanding temperatures of up to 400°C for one hour. The fans incorporate guide vanes for flow straightening to achieve maximum performance and will run at 993rpm.

Electrical and Mechanical Systems



In the preliminary design phase of the tunnel COWI established an overall concept for the electrical and mechanical systems with emphasis on safety-related functions such as electric power supply, tunnel lighting, fire fighting, tunnel ventilation and smoke extraction. This overall concept was used as a basis for the detailed design.

Later in the project COWI reviewed the client's detailed design of electrical and mechanical systems.

The electrical and mechanical systems will include the following: high- and low-voltage distribution ; reliable power supply based on UPS and diesel generators; tunnel lighting and road lighting; lighting in portal buildings, technical rooms and cross passages between tunnels; Central Monitoring and Control System ; fire detection system; public mobile communication system; fire fighting equipment, including fire water booster pumps, hydrants and portable extinguishers; tunnel ventilation for normal operation, congested operation and emergency situations ; smoke extraction system; pressurised air supply; HVAC and plumbing in portal buildings.