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Clem Jones Tunnel

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Clem Jones Tunnel
(CLEM7)
North-South Bypass Tunnel
Map
General information
TypeError: |type= not defined (help)
Length6.8 km (4.2 mi)
 Template:AUSR Shafston Avenue
Location(s)
viaKangaroo Point

The M7 Clem Jones Tunnel (CLEM7), known during its development as the North-South Bypass Tunnel (NSBT), is a AUD$3.2 billion toll road to be built underground between Woolloongabba and Bowen Hills in Brisbane, Australia.

The tunnel was originally proposed by then Labor Lord Mayor Jim Soorley in 2001, and was incorporated into the Liberal Party candidate Campbell Newman's five tunnel vision, called TransApex in 2002. In December 2007, Brisbane City Council decided to name the tunnel the Clem Jones Tunnel in honour of the former lord mayor.[1] On July 16 2008, the Government of Queensland announced that the tunnel will be known as the M7 Motorway. The M7 name will also be assigned to the Airport Link.

The project will be Brisbane’s first privately financed toll road.[2] The road is the city's largest road infrastructure project and one of Queensland's largest infrastructure projects. It will be the largest road tunnel in the country until the planned 6.7 km Airport Link tunnel is complete.[3]

Design

The project is designed to alleviate traffic congestion in the rapidly growing city, especially in Brisbane's congested central business district and Fortitude Valley.[4] The major benefit of the 6.8 km toll road is that it will bypass 23 existing sets of traffic lights, potentially saving 15 minutes of travel time and provide an additional Brisbane River crossing. The road includes 4.3 km of tunnel and 18 bridges.[5] The Clem7 will provide two lanes of traffic in each direction. Access to the tunnel from the southern end will be via Shaftson Avenue, Ipswich Road and the Pacific Motorway.[5] Northern connections include Lutwyche Road, the Inner City Bypass and in the future the Airport Link tunnel.[5]

Tunnel under construction

Each day up to 100 000 cars are expected to use the tunnel.[6] Toll collection will be conducted by both an electronic tolling system using a tag fitted inside vehicles or by taking a photograph of licence plates, avoiding the need for vehicles to slow or stop.[7] The design includes a smoke reduction ceiling that will rapidly draw out smoke in case of a fire or explosion.[8] A traffic control centre staffed by 50 personnel will monitor the tunnel 24 hours a day.[3] Included in the project's design are a series of urban enhancements such as parklands and road widening in adjacent suburbs.

Tender process

The successful tenderer, RiverCity Motorway Limited, was announced by Brisbane Lord Mayor Campbell Newman on 27 April 2006, beating a bid by the Brisconnections consortium.[3] Contracts for the design and construction of the tunnel were given to Leighton Contractors and Baulderstone Hornibrook Bilfinger Berger Joint Venture.[7] Transurban declined to place a tender because of risk-return factors.[9]

The losing bid by the Brisconnections consortium incorporated three lanes of traffic in each direction (as opposed to two lanes for the winning bid). With a price difference of AUD$20 million the decision to build a two lane tunnel has been criticised as shortsighted.[3] BrisConnections did win the tender for the Airport Link, which will link directly with the North-South Bypass Tunnel.

Controversy

There has also been considerable controversy over the environmental hazards which may be caused by the construction phase and operation of the tunnels.[6] In March 2005, local residents protested construction plans primarily due to the expected air pollution from exhaust ventilation stacks.[10] One 43 m purple structure is being built in Jurgens Street, Woolloongabba, another 36 m red stack is being constructed in O'Connell Terrace, Bowen Hills.[6]

One of the reasons for building the tunnel as a public-private partnership is that it should reduce Brisbane City Council's risks regarding the tunnel construction and operation. However, the public disclosure documents released by Rivercity Motorway indicate that there are still considerable un-costed risks left with Council. For example, a 10 m extension was required for the exhaust stack at the Woolloongabba end of the tunnel and the full cost was required to be borne by Brisbane City Council, not Rivercity Motorway.

The tunnel will be tolled for a minimum of 45 years,[5] or ten years more than promised by Newman in the 2004 election. The toll on this tunnel is expected to be about $4.20 when the tunnel is opened in late 2009,[11] despite Newman promising a toll of no more than $2.00 including GST and a total cost of AUD$1 billion during the election.[12]

Public offering

There has also been a number of questions raised in The Australian and the Australian Financial Review about the viability of the public offering for the tunnel.[citation needed] The initial share offer was for shares at a cost of $1.00 with 50% deferred for 12 months.[4] The shares were listed on the ASX at $0.46, 8 % below the offer price, and as of November 2008, have traded for as little as $0.13. The ASX issuer code for the Rivercity Motorway Group is RCY. A dividend of 2.4c per stapled unit has recently been released to investors.

Construction

The boring machine dubbed Matilda

Construction commenced in September 2006.[13] At the start of the project it was longest road tunnel being built in the country.[11] 3.5 million tonnes of excavated rock will be removed from the tunnel by conveyor, stored in silos and taken away by truck.[13] During a typical weekday period more than 25 trucks per hour have been hauling removed soil and rock along Kingsford Smith Drive to an area near the Brisbane Airport.[8]

During construction all 1700 staff working on the project and all site visitors, who are inside the tunnel, could be located at any time using an RFID tagging system that transmits a person's location wirelessly.[14] The system was designed to monitor site access and asset location as well as to improve safety and efficiency in what is a high profile and potentially hazardous worksite. The technology may be retained after construction is complete to assist in the maintenance of the tunnel.

Difficult drilling conditions were expected due to the very hard Brisbane Tuff rock that is found under inner Brisbane. Both purpose-built, double-shield boring machines began on the northern end, with the first arriving in Brisbane in July 2007 and cutting commencing in December after testing was conducted.[3] At the time, the tunneling machines were the biggest in the world, weighing 4 000 tonnes and each being 250 m in length.[15] Each machine cost AUD$50 million to build.[3] The boring machines were built by the German firm Herrenknecht and can dig up to 20 m per day. When finished the boring machines will have placed 37 000 precast linings.[3] Smaller roadheader machines began from the southern end in February 2007.

As of September 2008, TBM 2 named Florence had reached Kangaroo Point on the southern side of the Brisbane River whereas TBM 1 named Matilda, which began in March 2008, was still tunneling under the river. By this time bridges had reached the final construction stages at the Northern Portal and the Morrissey Street bridge in Woolloongabba. In early December 2008, Florence had connected to the eastern entrance tunnels from Shafston Avenue.[11] By April 2009 the tunnel excavation was 85% complete.[16] TBM2 achieved a major milestone on 16 April 2009, with its portion of tunneling work now complete.[17] October 2010 is the official date for the road's opening, although Lord Mayor Campbell Newman has stated that the tunnel will open earlier in 2010.[17]

See also

References

  1. ^ Neil Hickey (2007-12-17). "Tunnel named after Clem Jones". The Courier Mail. Queensland Newspapers. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
  2. ^ "North-South Bypass Tunnel". maunsell.com. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "North-South Bypass Tunnel, Brisbane, Australia". roadtraffic-technology.com. SPG Media. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  4. ^ a b Trevor Chappell (2006-06-14). "Brisbane tunnel group wants to raise $724m". Sydney Morning Herald. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
  5. ^ a b c d "Rivercity Motorway Group - Facts and Figures". Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  6. ^ a b c Phil Bartsch (2009-03-13). "Colourful vents for cross-city Clem Jones Tunnel". The Courier Mail. Queensland Newspapers. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  7. ^ a b "Rivercity Motorway Group - Clem Jones Tunnel". Rivercity Motorway Pty Ltd. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  8. ^ a b Tony Moore (2008-07-16). "'Clem 7' now 1km under city". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  9. ^ Rod Myer (2005-03-23). "Big three infrastructure funds baulk at Brisbane tunnel". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  10. ^ "Protesters rally against Brisbane tunnel". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2005-03-19. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  11. ^ a b c Alison Sandy (2008-12-08). "Clem Jones Tunnel joins up ahead of schedule". The Courier Mail. Queensland Newspapers. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  12. ^ Michael Corkill (2006-08-08). "Tunnel goes deeper". The Courier Mail. Queensland Newspapers. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  13. ^ a b "Rivercity Motorway Group - Construction". Rivercity Motorway Pty Ltd. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  14. ^ Dave Friedlos (2008-06-17). "RFID Improves Safety, Efficiency of Brisbane Tunnel Construction". RFID Journal. RFID Journal LLC. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
  15. ^ "Massive tunnel borer arrives in Brisbane". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2007-06-15. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  16. ^ "Project Update April 2009" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  17. ^ a b Thea Phillips (2008-04-16). "Clem-7 drill breaks through". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2008-04-16.

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