Huge tunneling machine in Washington gets a name
SEATTLE - The five-story-tall tunneling machine that will bore a hole from SODO to Queen Anne for the new State Road 99 tunnel now has a name: Bertha.
The Washington State Department of Transportation launched a contest to name the world's biggest tunneling machine back in October.
The winning name - tweeted Monday by WSDOT - was submitted by both a second-grade student at Lincoln Elementary School in Hoquiam and a fifth-grade class at Poulsbo Elementary School.
It is named in honor of Bertha Knight Landes, who was elected mayor of Seattle in 1926.
"This project is about breaking new ground," former mayor and contest judge Charley Royer said in a press release. "Like the SR 99 tunneling machine, Bertha Knight Landes was one of a kind. It's only fitting that the machine bears her name."
Boring for the new SR 99 tunnel is scheduled to start next summer.
In the meantime, you can follow Bertha on Twitter at @BerthaDigsSR99, as it's very important for the giant piece of machinery to connect with today's youth.
"as it's very important for the giant piece of machinery to connect with today's youth."...WTW ??
"as it's very important for the giant piece of machinery to connect with today's youth." - (From the story)... LOL, almost made me blow coffee through my nose. Good one :P
Bertha? I figured they'd name this one Lily also!
Tunneling costs very a great deal. In soft soil without water intrusion, it can be as little as $80M/mile. A difficult bore can run $2 Billion/mile. Add to that the costs of building approaches and going under the river can easily exceed the cost of even the boondoggle bridge.
Tunneling costs very a great deal. In soft soil without water intrusion, it can be as little as $80M/mile. A difficult bore can run $2 Billion/mile.
holy mega drill batman! how do it work? do it vibrate?
I'd love to see it in action....how does it work?? I mean, I know it spins...but what happens to the excess earth it spins out? Interesting!
@fracas Basically, the rock chips are guided to the center of the head, and a conveyer carries the rock to waiting rail cars behind the machine. Here is video that explains the project. Skip to about 1 minute in to get to the part of how the TBM itself works. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBHZP9VfcwE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBHZP9VfcwE
Hmm... Anybody remember the old TV sitcom "Beverly Hillbillies"? Â And the episode in which some genius came up with the idea of drilling a huge tunnel through the mountain, putting a giant fan at one end, and blowing all the smog out of LA??? Â Â :-)
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Seriously, though... how will they transport Bertha from where it is to where it will need to be? Â
This is a fascinating story..! Â :-)
@margay1 The machine was shipped in pieces from Japan. It is now being assembled at the south end of the planned tunnel. In other words, it already is where it needs to be.
 @Vince009  @margay1 ~ Again, thanks..!  I wondered about that ~ that it might already be on-site ~ but from the photos. you can't really tell much about what the location is... Â
Don't let the cartels get there hands on it.
Wow..!   To get some perspective on the sheer size of  "Bertha", look towards the bottom left-hand corner of the big picture above... there's something (like a platform?) standing next to the big "tube" part, it has a white cover over it; nearby are some people.  The people look like ANTS..!   This reminds me of the shipyard photos of the big ships being built during WW-II...
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Question about that huge green part in front: Â What is it and what are the different-shaped black and yellow things attached to the front of it???
@margay1 Thanks for pointing out the people. I wonder if that thing makes them feel insignificant?
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On closer look. The black parts do also seem to be cutting heads, must just have two different types for some reason. I would guess because the hill containes two different types of rock.
 @Vince009 ~  Many thanks, Vince, for your replies - I've never seen anything like this boring machine before, so this was interesting info..!  Â
@margay1 That is the actual face the cuts into the stone. The yellow rollers are what chip away the rock. The black "parts" are actually holes for rollers that are not yet installed. The red pieces are guides that channel the rock chips to a conveyer behind the head.
WOW!!
And it's nickname shall be "rat apocalypse," since that's what it will feel like to downtown tenants when the rats are chased from underground into all the substructures.
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We should take Seattle's lead on this (and I cannot believe I am saying that), but tunnels are the way to go for many transportation issues.
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They are no more expensive per length than bridges, have no more risk than bridges and have no more upkeep than bridges. But you get the benefit of the surface to build on top of them.
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Cut and cover works well in flat places, but Portland is not flat.
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So projects like a "605" from Tualatin to Longview through Washington County, bypass for highway 26 bypass downtown Portland, an expressway from Portland to Boring or Estacada all could be projects done using a boring machine.
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They are used extensively in the east where they need to build infrastructure where the area is already built up. This would solve the issue with eminent domain of hundreds of homes and the destruction of neighborhoods when trying to create bedroom comminutes and connecting towns together.
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Indeed MAX (Metro Area âExpressâ) would be all that much more express if it was below grade. AND it would not suffer from frosts like it does now.
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 @Repoman Tunneling is hugely more expensive than bridge building. The biggest risk being that you really don't know whats down there until you start digging.
This is what they should do for the Columbia River Crossing. Scrap building a bridge.