China
Africa
Explore chapters and articles related to this topic
The second Gotthard tunnel tube
Published in Daniele Peila, Giulia Viggiani, Tarcisio Celestino, Tunnels and Underground Cities: Engineering and Innovation meet Archaeology, Architecture and Art, 2020
The planned second tunnel tube through the Gotthard has a total length of 16,866 m. It runs at a standard clearance of 40 m from the service and infrastructure tunnel located east of the existing Gotthard Tunnel. The layout of the line runs largely parallel to the existing tube (Figure 2). The clearance is reduced in the portal areas in order to let the axis of the second tube run along the axis of the service and infrastructure tunnel. In Airolo and Göschenen, the existing portal structures – which were designed for the inclusion of a second tube already while the first tube was being constructed – and cut-and-cover tunnels are used as tunnel portals. To ensure full use of the service and infrastructure tunnel once the work is completed, the portal areas will be repositioned in advance.
Moncenisio, from Myth to history TELT – Tunnel Euralpin Lyon Turin and the collection of historic engravings on the Frejus tunnel
Published in Daniele Peila, Giulia Viggiani, Tarcisio Celestino, Tunnels and Underground Cities: Engineering and Innovation meet Archaeology, Architecture and Art, 2020
M. Virano, G. Dati, M. Ricci, G. Avataneo
The first, and most important, effect of the completion of the Fréjus Tunnel was to demonstrate that it was actually possible to dig galleries through the Alps. This led to the excavation of several additional transalpine tunnels in the following years. Indeed, works for the Gotthard Tunnel started already in 1872, just one year after the opening of the Fréjus. Furthermore, the story of the project showed that it was possible to accomplish these works with a minimal loss of human life. During the thirteen years that it took to dig through the Fréjus, the construction suffered a total of 48 deaths. It is for sure quite a high number, but it is still low if compared, for example, with the 177 official deaths during the ten years of the Gotthard dig, which in addition do not include deaths for sickness or malnutrition. Furthermore, of the 48 Fréjus deaths, eight were due to fights, one was a suicide and four were due to the explosion, probably caused on purpose, of the Fourneaux powder magazine. The main killer, however, was the epidemic of cholera that developed on the Italian side in 1865, which killed 18 diggers and caused further 60 deaths in the nearby city of Bardonecchia. The deaths directly liked to work site accidents were therefore, on average, less than two per year, which is, no matter how one looks at it, a very low number, especially if one considers the technological level of the time. Such a reduction in the total amount of deaths constitutes an undeniable merit of the management of the Fréjus excavation.
The second Gotthard tunnel tube
Published in Daniele Peila, Giulia Viggiani, Tarcisio Celestino, Tunnels and Underground Cities: Engineering and Innovation meet Archaeology, Architecture and Art, 2019
The planned second tunnel tube through the Gotthard has a total length of 16,866 m. It runs at a standard clearance of 40 m from the service and infrastructure tunnel located east of the existing Gotthard Tunnel. The layout of the line runs largely parallel to the existing tube (Figure 2). The clearance is reduced in the portal areas in order to let the axis of the second tube run along the axis of the service and infrastructure tunnel. In Airolo and Göschenen, the existing portal structures – which were designed for the inclusion of a second tube already while the first tube was being constructed – and cut-and-cover tunnels are used as tunnel portals. To ensure full use of the service and infrastructure tunnel once the work is completed, the portal areas will be repositioned in advance.
Investigation of bus evacuation flow rates for tunnel fire quantitative risk assessment
Published in Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, 2022
Hung-Chieh Chung, Miho Seike, Nobuyoshi Kawabata, Masato Hasegawa, Shen-Wen Chien, Tzu-Sheng Shen
The number of road tunnels is continuously increasing with the rapid expansion of road transportation networks, requiring immediate precautions against emergency situations to ensure road safety. For example, a fire incident in critical infrastructure can be catastrophic (Li and Ingason 2018). In case of a fire, long and enclosed tunnel spaces can make evacuation, rescue, and firefighting extremely challenging. Records of fire incidents in tunnels have led to catastrophic consequences such as the 1999 Mont Blanc tunnel fire incident in France and Italy with 39 fatalities (Duffé and Marec 1999; Beard et al. 2005), the 1999 Tauern tunnel fire incident in Austria with 12 fatalities (Pucher and Pucher 1999; Leitner 2001), the 2001 St. Gotthard tunnel fire incident in Switzerland with 11 fatalities (Turner 2001), and the 2012 Hsuehshan tunnel in Taiwan with 2 fatalities (Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau 2013, 2016; Hsu et al. 2017). Those incidents showed the importance of preventing tunnel fire disasters, requiring accurate strategies for reducing the risk and consequences of fires. An important aspect of the investigation of strategies to prevent disastrous tunnel fires is the risk assessment, especially for preventing possible casualties during tunnel fires.
A Practical Approach for Tunnel Fire Verification
Published in Structural Engineering International, 2020
Riccardo Stucchi, Francesco Amberg
Relevant fire events, such as those in the Channel Tunnel (1996, railway tunnel1,2), Mont Blanc Tunnel (1999, road tunnel1,3,4), Tauern Tunnel (1999, road tunnel) and Gotthard Tunnel (2001, road tunnel1,3–6), have substantially increased the attention paid to and the demand for safety of underground civil constructions in the case of fire. Tunnel fire may generate rapid and important increases in temperature,7 with severe consequences on civil structures and electromechanical equipment, and it represents a risk leading to possible fatalities. Among the various aspects to be considered for a tunnel fire safety analysis, one must assess the structural behaviour and the risk of failure of the concrete lining.
Comparison and analysis of crash frequency and rate in cross-river tunnels using random-parameter models
Published in Journal of Transportation Safety & Security, 2022
Shengdi Chen, Yao Chen, Yingying Xing
Due to the dark environment and constrained cross-section of a tunnel, drivers may experience increased anxiety and alter their behaviors in tunnels compared with open roads. The entrance and exit of a tunnel with varying illumination requires drivers to adapt to rapid changes in light within a short time, which may cause temporary blindness of drivers (PIARC Technical Committee, Road Tunnel Operation, 2011). Therefore, driving in a tunnel requires drivers to pay more attention and stay alert, which can increase the driving difficulty and crash risk. In addition, a tunnel is a closed environment with a small internal space and poor air mobility, which prevents the dissipation of smoke and heat, hinders the rescue operations of firefighters during a serious crash and impedes the planning of a safe escape route for tunnel users. Although the traffic crash rate in a tunnel is lower than that for other road sections (Amundsen & Engebretsen, 2009; Kircher & Ahlstrom, 2012; Lemke, 2000; PIARC Technical Committee, Road Tunnel Operation, 2011), the severity of crashes in a tunnel is often higher than that of crashes in other road sections (Amundsen & Ranes, 2000; Bassan, 2016; Kircher & Ahlstrom, 2012; Ma, Shao, & Zhang, 2009). For example, the catastrophic road tunnel fire that occurred in the Yanhou tunnel in China in 2014 was caused by a truck rear-end crash, which killed 39 people and injured 12 people. In addition, many major crashes have occurred during the construction and operation of highway tunnels (Gotthard tunnel in 2001; Frejus Road Tunnel in 2005). These accidents have caused not only numerous casualties and economic losses but also substantial adverse impacts on the security and stability of society. Therefore, improving the safety of tunnel traffic has become the focus of attention of government, designers, tunnel management personnel, and road users.