Clem7 breaks through at Kangaroo Point
07 December, 2008
The Clem7 Tunnel has reached a major milestone, with the first Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) completing its journey under the Brisbane River.
The $50 million TBM, known as Florence, today drilled through the last of the rock beneath Main Street at Kangaroo Point with its 12.4m rotating cutter face.
A second TBM - digging the northbound lanes of the tunnel - was expected to breakthrough early next year.
The project will create twin-tunnels under the Brisbane River linking the Inner City Bypass in Bowen Hills to Ipswich Road and the South East Freeway in Woolloongabba, with an extra connection at Shafston Avenue.
The Lord Mayor said the 4000-tonne machine had travelled 2.8km chewing and spitting out rock and simultaneously lining the tunnel with concrete to reach this point.
“This breakthrough is a significant milestone event, symbolising an outstanding engineering achievement for Brisbane,” he said.
The cutter face this morning ground spectacularly through the last of the rock at Kangaroo Point, breaking through the wall into the carved out enclosure.
“Florence will now travel a final 1.5km to end its historic journey at Woolloongabba followed by the second TBM, Matilda,” Cr Newman said.
The historic event was witnessed by over 50 invited guests.
"Come the end of next year thousands of vehicles will trace this exact route every day to bypass the city, saving the economy valuable time," the Lord Mayor said.
The Clem7 project is the first of the Lord Mayor’s five TransApex tunnel and bridge projects that will take through-traffic out of the inner city.
The CLEM7 bypasses 18 sets of traffic lights and reduces travel times by up to 30 per cent between the Bowen Hills and Woolloongabba.
More than 2.5 million tonnes of rock has been excavated representing over 70 per cent of the total volume for the 4.3km twin tunnels.
Clem7 remains ahead of the original completion date October 2010, with completion now scheduled for the end of 2009.
“TransApex is about getting Brisbane moving and enabling a successful economy for our city,” Cr Newman said. "Clem7 is the first piece in the jigsaw."
Once complete Brisbane will have a motorway standard ring road, relieving inner city suburbs of rat running and pollution. [continued overleaf]
The Lord Mayor’s other TransApex cross-river ring road projects are on schedule. Construction is underway on the Hale Street Link bridge, the EIS has been released for the Northern Link Tunnel and Airport Link is being taken forward by State Government.
“This has been an incredible nine-month journey for the TBM including excavating tens of metres below some significant Brisbane landmarks," Cr Newman said.
The diggers have burrowed under the RNA Showgrounds, the Jubilee Hotel, the Brunswick St train station, the Valley Mall, Kemp Place Fire Station, Story Bridge and the Jubilee Hotel.
At the same time construction all 18 bridges at either end of the tunnel and all 3km of roadheader tunnelling now substantially complete.
“The Clem7 is the biggest infrastructure project in Australia right now and what it’s achieved ahead of schedule is a remarkable feat of engineering,” the Lord Mayor said.
