Skip to main content

Bridges and tunnels tackle congestion problems

In preparation for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, the Black Sea health resort of Sotschi, Russia, is tackling its growing traffic jam problems.A 13km bypass and a new main road passing mainly under the city involves the construction of 15 tunnels and a number of bridges and flyovers.
February 29, 2012 Read time: 3 mins
A Wirth roadheader at the Sochi tunnels: another has been ordered
In preparation for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, the Black Sea health resort of Sotschi, Russia, is tackling its growing traffic jam problems.

A 13km bypass and a new main road passing mainly under the city involves the construction of 15 tunnels and a number of bridges and flyovers.

298 PERI has developed and supplied a tunnel formwork carriage for construction of the six emergency parking bays (three in each direction) in a 2,607metre long tunnel on the bypass.
Here, the two-lane tunnel tube is widened from 10.8m by around 3.5m, and the biggest challenge was the design of the lifting and lowering units with integrated horizontal adjustment device.

"Because the formwork carriage was to be moved to the next emergency bay through the already finished standard cross-sections of the tunnel, this meant that the size of the complete construction had be reduced quite considerably," says PERI.
The tunnel formwork carriage developed was based on the VARIOKIT modular construction kit (the use of standardised serial components is an advantage for the contractor because the system elements can also be used for future formworking operations).

For striking and the rail-guided moving procedure to each subsequent casting segment of a parking bay, the side formwork could be folded hydraulically and the complete formwork carriage was able to be lowered. In this way, each of the emergency parking bays could be constructed in six 9m long concreting sections in weekly cycles.

To reduce the formwork carriage (from 14.3m wide to 10.10m, height from 8.7m to 7.6m) to move to the next parking bay, PERI engineers developed an accurately defined working sequence by which the formwork segments could be folded and lowered to allow passage through the substantially smaller standard cross section.

"The combination of load frames, heavy duty spindles, walers and GT 24 formwork girders ensured high utilisation and load-carrying capacity of the formwork carriage. The striking and moving process could be safely and quickly carried out by construction site personnel although all of the technology was completely new to them," says PERI.

All the tunnels on the partially-completed Stoschi bypass have been constructed using four Wirth Paurat roadheaders (heavy duty machines specifically designed for tunneling). Three of the four machines are operated by the OOO Tonneldorstroy (TDS) company, which has placed another order with Wirth for a Type T3.20 roadheader weighing about 120tonnes and with 300kW installed cutting power.

Instead of blasting the rock with explosives, the cutter head of the roadheader excavates precisely the profile that is required, without unnecessary overbreak or rock disturbance.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Work starting on second Chesapeake Tunnel project
    September 20, 2017
    Work is now starting on a major tunnel project in the US state of Virginia. Construction of a second tunnel connection for the Chesapeake Bay is expected to cost US$756million. The original Chesapeake Bay Tunnel and Bridge crossing opened to traffic in April 1964 and measures just over 37km long. Construction of a second parallel bridge was commenced in 1995 and opened to traffic in 1999. However the central tunnel link was not widened at that time and now carries more traffic than it was designed for, whil
  • Latin America invests in infrastructure growth
    February 15, 2012
    Travelling in one of the world's most diverse regions is not always easy, but spectacular engineering feats will make life easier as Patrick Smith reports. Five years ago a report from the World Bank noted that infrastructure in most of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) had improved over the previous ten years.
  • Bolivia tunnel and highway project under construction
    February 9, 2017
    In Bolivia work is progressing on the strategic Incahuasi tunnel project – Mauro Nogarin writes In southern Bolivia, the Bolivian Highway Administrator (ABC) is supervising the construction of the Incahuasi Tunnel and Monteagudo-Muyupampa-Ipati road. This work is of fundamental importance for the country as it will improve the flow of traffic and boost trade between the departments of Santa Cruz and Chuquisaca. The Monteagudo-Ipati highway project includes the Incachuasi tunnel which has a length of 96km
  • Efficient earthmoving builds new road links
    February 7, 2012
    Efficient earthmoving is allowing productive road construction in the Egyptian desert, Mike Woof reports. Despite ferocious desert temperatures, efficient earthmoving operations will help build new road links in Southern Egypt. Close to the Egyptian city of Assuit, the contractor Orascom is working on three key desert highway projects that will provide vital transport connections for the country's growing economy.