Skip to main content

Netherlands: Velsertunnel to be closed for nine months

The 60-year-old road and rail Velsertunnel in the Netherlands will be closed from now until the end of the year for major renovations. Improvements to the Velsertunnel beneath the North Sea Canal are scheduled for the road sections only, according to the Rijkswaterstaat, the Dutch government’s Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment, and the consortium doing the work. Rijkswaterstaat awarded a design/build/maintain contract in 2014 to Hyacint, a consortium of Besix, Dura Vermeer, and Spie, supp
April 19, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
The 60-year-old road and rail Velsertunnel in the Netherlands will be closed from now until the end of the year for major renovations.

Improvements to the Velsertunnel beneath the North Sea Canal are scheduled for the road sections only, according to the Rijkswaterstaat, the Dutch government’s Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment, and the consortium doing the work.

Rijkswaterstaat awarded a design/build/maintain contract in 2014 to Hyacint, a consortium of Besix, Dura Vermeer, and Spie, supported by iNFRANEA. Last year the consortium completed a 3-D BIM model (Building Information Modelling) of the tunnel and of the proposed work to be done. %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 oLinkExternal Click here Visit bimontherocks.com website false http://bimontherocks.com/bim-helps-renovate-aging-tunnel/ false false%> for the presentation.

The renovated tunnel will have a 12cm higher clearance profile for trucks, new asphalt and modern technical installations, such as CCTV, fire protection equipment, traffic control systems and ventilation. Escape routes will also be fully updated.

Under the contract, the original and now iconic ventilation towers reaching skyward atop the main ventilation building must remain intact. The unusual-looking towers were listed as a national heritage site in 2014.

Around 65,000 vehicles a day use the tunnel and traffic will be diverted to the Wijkertunnel, a toll tunnel.

The Wijkertunnel is a 21-year old structure that is the first public-private partnership in the Netherlands. Three-quarters of the total €272 million construction cost was put up by a consortium of banks and insurance companies, including ING and Commerzbank. The contract was for 30 years.

Related Content

  • International transport conference for Rome
    April 19, 2016
    An international transport conference is being planned to be held in Rome in the second quarter of 2017. The AIIT International Congress on Transport Infrastructure and Systems will be held from April 10th – April 12th. The aim of the event is to promote transport as a growing industry and the congress will provide a forum for discussion among researchers, scientists and engineers focussed on transport and infrastructure engineering. The congress is being organised by the Italian Association for Traffic and
  • Philippi-Hagenbuch Hivol water tanks
    January 28, 2014
    Specifically developed with a safety focus, HiVol water tanks from Philippi-Hagenbuch (PHIL) are said to provide a design that optimises capacity and enhances travel safety. Yhey are built for any make or model of off-highway truck, and according to PHIL the HiVol water tank series serves as an ideal solution for a multitude of applications, including dust suppression, fire protection, road construction and wash down.
  • Hamm extends H series at INTERMAT
    January 6, 2017
    With the market launch of the new H series, there are now five compactors including the H18i, H18iP, H20i, H20iP and H25i. These models have an operating weight of 18, 20 and 25 tonnes. The ‘i’ in the name stands for intelligent emission control and reflects the fact that these machines are powered by a future-proof internal combustion engine with ‘Tier 4’ technology. The frame construction and engine cover design provides an unobstructed view of the surface to be compacted. The operator spends his working
  • Hamm extends H series at INTERMAT
    April 17, 2012
    With the market launch of the new H series, there are now five compactors including the H18i, H18iP, H20i, H20iP and H25i. These models have an operating weight of 18, 20 and 25 tonnes. The ‘i’ in the name stands for intelligent emission control and reflects the fact that these machines are powered by a future-proof internal combustion engine with ‘Tier 4’ technology. The frame construction and engine cover design provides an unobstructed view of the surface to be compacted. The operator spends his working