New tunnel connection for Mexico

A major tunnel construction project has been carried out in Mexico, setting a technological precedent for Latin America . Mexican materials giant CEMEX took part in the construction of the Coatzacoalcos Underwater Tunnel in Veracruz, Mexico. This innovative project features large tunnel bores and utilised a complex construction process. As a result of these technical challenges CEMEX was required to design and deliver special concretes so as to allow the construction of the different structures needed to
November 8, 2017 Read time: 3 mins
The new tunnel sets a precedent for Latin America

A major tunnel construction project has been carried out in Mexico, setting a technological precedent for Latin America

Mexican materials giant 3016 CEMEX took part in the construction of the Coatzacoalcos Underwater Tunnel in Veracruz, Mexico. This innovative project features large tunnel bores and utilised a complex construction process. As a result of these technical challenges CEMEX was required to design and deliver special concretes so as to allow the construction of the different structures needed to provide the tunnel and profile as well as for the portals.

Because the route of the tunnel runs under water the company managing the project, Constructora Túnel de Coatzacoalcos, asked CEMEX to deliver specific concrete solutions for the different structural elements and the agents to which they would be exposed. “Through its quality department, CEMEX worked with us to design the concrete mix used in the tunnel to meet the durability requirements specified by the needs of this project and international standards,” explained Darwin Hernandez, technical manager for the construction project.

CEMEX supplied 48,000m3 of special products, from concrete for the different structural elements to the design and placement of concrete pavement inside the tunnel and the toll area. CEMEX supplied concrete in separate massive pouring of 600m3 and 800m3 for the slabs of the access ramps to the tunnel.

“CEMEX offered its know-how and ability to solve construction challenges. Additionally, it followed up very closely with both the needs prior to the design of the project and the concrete formulations to proceed with the castings,” added Jose Armengol Notario, production superintendent of Producción de Constructora Túnel de Coatzacoalcos.

The chosen construction method was developed in the Netherlands and was selected as it provided the least impact on urban areas. The technique utilised large prefabricated reinforced concrete modules that were produced in a dry dock and then transported to the site for installation under water. For this project, five concrete blocks were built in a dry dock on the banks of the Coatzacoalcos River and later transferred and placed at the bottom of the river.

The tunnel features four traffic lanes in all, with two in each direction, and is expected to ease traffic congestion between the Coatzacoalcos urban area and the petrochemical industrial area of Villa Allende. Its effect on congestion is expected to be significant, reducing commuting times from 30 minutes to just three minutes.

Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Mexico: underwater tunnel in Latin America
    May 8, 2015
    Mexico will benefit from an important new underwater tunnel - Mauro Nogarin writes. The city of Coatzacoalcos is located at the mouth of the river of the same name, in the Gulf of Mexico, 302km from the city of Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, in the east end of trans-isthmian corridor and at the southern end of Veracruz State. The city is seeing a key development as currently construction is 85% completed on the first immersed tube, underwater tunnel in Latin America. The reasons why experts chose this type of tunne
    Read More
  • Underground routes for highways
    July 20, 2012
    Increasingly, and where possible, roads are being built in tunnels often for environmental reasons, writes Patrick Smith As part of the new M7 motorway development in the southwest of Ireland, the four-lane route crosses the River Shannon near Limerick, before it flows into the Atlantic. Centrepiece of the 10km long Limerick Southern Ring Road is the required tunnelling (675m long), which including the north and south entrance and exit ramps, means it will be 915m long. Completion of the work is planned for
    Read More
  • Bertha ends her Alaskan Way voyage in Seattle
    December 21, 2017
    Seattle's State Route 99 viaduct is coming down. David Arminas was on site. Bertha, the world’s largest diameter earth pressure balance tunnel boring machine, with a cutterhead diameter of 17.5m, is no more. Her 2.7km journey underneath the waterfront area of Seattle finished on April 4 and the power went off for the last time on an extraordinary TBM that had finally completed an extraordinary job. “A small sidewalk job would have had more impact on city traffic than we have had,” says Brian Russell a v
    Read More
  • Diamond in the Pearl: China’s Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge complex
    March 8, 2018
    People in the Pearl River Delta are celebrating the Chinese New Year with the imminent opening of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. David Arminas reviews progress. China’s Spring Festival, or Lunar New Year, is celebrated with the usual enthusiasm and spectacular fireworks. But celebrations will be particularly joyous for many people in the southern Pearl River Delta. The soon-to-be-open Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) will slash travel time between the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Zhuh
    Read More

Highlighted Content