Dublin Port Tunnel - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Dublin Port Tunnel (Irish

Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

: Tollán Chalafort Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a road traffic tunnel

Tunnel

A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...

in Dublin, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

, that forms part of the M50 motorway

M50 motorway (Ireland)

The M50 motorway is a motorway in Ireland running in a C-shaped ring around the north-eastern, northern, western and southern sides of the capital city, Dublin. The northern end of the route is located at the entrance to the Dublin Port Tunnel. Anti-clockwise it heads northwest through the tunnel...

.

The twin tunnels form a two-lane dual carriageway

Dual carriageway

A dual carriageway is a class of highway with two carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation...

connecting Dublin Port

Dublin Port

Dublin Port is Ireland's biggest sea port. It has both historical and contemporary economic importance. Approximatively two-thirds of the Republic of Ireland's port traffic goes via Dublin Port...

, which lies to the east of central Dublin, and the M1 motorway close to Dublin Airport

Dublin Airport

Dublin Airport, , is operated by the Dublin Airport Authority. Located in Collinstown, in the Fingal part of County Dublin, 18.4 million passengers passed through the airport in 2010, making it the busiest airport in the Republic of Ireland, followed by Cork and Shannon...

. The tunnels are 4.5 km (2.8 mi) in length and total project length of 5.6 km (3.5 mi). It had final cost of approximately €

Euro

The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...

752 million.

The tunnel was officially opened on 20 December 2006 by then Taoiseach

Taoiseach

The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

Bertie Ahern

Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....

; it was initially only open to HGVs.Port tunnel opens after last-minute delay, RTÉ News

RTÉ News

RTÉ News and Current Affairs , is a major division of Raidió Teilifís Éireann responsible for news programming on television, radio and online within the Republic of Ireland. It is, by far, the largest and most popular news source in Ireland - with 77% of the Irish public regarding it as their main...

It was opened to all traffic on 28 January 2007.

Purpose

Traffic congestion in central Dublin became severe at the turn of the century, with thousands of heavy goods vehicles travelling to and from Dublin port via the city centre. The tunnel relieves surface road congestion in Dublin city centre by diverting heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) from Dublin Port directly onto the motorway network. This has positive knock-on effects for bus users, pedestrians and cyclists travelling along the city quays, including better air quality and safer travel.

To discourage commuters from using the tunnel, vehicles other than HGVs are heavily tolled. HGVs travelling north and west benefit from the expected six minute journey time through the tunnel. A tunnel was chosen as it was decided that a surface relief road was not feasible.

The Dublin Bus

Dublin Bus

Dublin Bus is a public transport operator in Ireland. It operates an extensive bus network of 172 radial, cross-city and peripheral routes and 18 night routes in the city of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area. The company, established in 1987, is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann which is...

Route 142 uses the tunnel to get to the port area of the city from the northern suburbs.

Longer distance buses from Belfast

Belfast

Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...

, Derry

Derry

Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...

and Letterkenny

Letterkenny

Letterkenny , with a population of 17,568, is the largest town in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. The town is located on the River Swilly...

occasionally use the route as an alternative to the heavily congested surface roads.

Port tunnel project

The tunnel was first suggested in the 1990s after a number of transportation and engineering studies and was included in the Dublin City Development Plan 1999 – 2005. The project was approved following a public inquiry in 1999.

The tunnel formed part of the National Development Plan

National Development Plan

National Development Plan is the title given by the Irish Government to a scheme of organised large-scale expenditure on national infrastructure. The period covered by the seven year plan runs from 2000 to 2006. A second National Development Plan is currently in progress and is due to run until...

and funds were provided under the plan to the National Roads Authority

National Roads Authority

The National Roads Authority is a state body in the Republic of Ireland, responsible for the national road network. The NRA was established as part of the Roads Act 1993 and commenced operations on 23 December 1993 in accordance with S.I. 407 of 1993.County councils remain responsible for local...

by the Department of Transport

Department of Transport (Ireland)

The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport is a department of the Government of Ireland that is responsible for transport policy and overseeing transport services and infrastructure. The Department is led by the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport who is assisted by two Ministers of State...

. The contract was managed by Dublin City Council

Dublin City Council

Dublin City Council is the local authority for the city of Dublin in Ireland. It has 52 members and is the largest local authority in Ireland. Until 2001, it was known as Dublin Corporation.-Legal status:...

and supervised by Brown & Root

Kellogg, Brown and Root

KBR, Inc. is an American engineering, construction and private military contracting company, formerly a subsidiary of Halliburton, headquartered in Houston. The company also has large offices in Arlington, Birmingham, Newark, Delaware and Leatherhead, UK. After Halliburton acquired Dresser...

, a unit of Halliburton

Halliburton

Halliburton is the world's second largest oilfield services corporation with operations in more than 70 countries. It has hundreds of subsidiaries, affiliates, branches, brands and divisions worldwide and employs over 50,000 people....

. The main contractor was a Japanese-British-Irish consortium Nishimatsu Mowlem

Mowlem

Mowlem was one of the largest construction and civil engineering companies in the United Kingdom. Carillion bought the firm in 2006.-History:Founded by John Mowlem in 1822, the company was awarded a Royal Warrant in 1902 and went public on the London Stock Exchange in 1924. It acquired SGB Group in...

Irishenco¹ (NMI), appointed in 2000.

The tender price for construction of the tunnel was €457 million. The final project cost was brought to €752 million by land acquisition, design, insurance, legal and other services, plus supervision by Brown & Root.

Construction commenced in June 2001 and the tunnel was originally due to open in 2005 after an elapsed time of 43 months. It eventually opened in December 2006, giving an elapsed time of 66 months.

One reason for the project extension was to allay residents’ noise concerns. Under some areas such as Griffith Avenue and the Cloisters, boring was restricted to 16 hours per day. Under Annadale Crescent it was reduced to 13 hours.

Tunnel specifications

Length: 4.5 km (2.8 mi) - total project 5.6 km (3.5 mi)
Bores: 2
Bore width: 11.77 m (38 ft 7.82 inches)
Lane width (two per bore): 3.65 m (11 ft 11.70 inches)
Shoulder width (two per bore): 1 m (3 ft 3.37 inches)
Bore height: 4.9 m (16 ft 0.91 inches)
Operating height: 4.65 m (15 ft 3.07 inches)
Lowest point: -30 m (-98 ft 5.10 inches) at Marino

It is the third-longest urban

Urban area

An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...

motorway tunnel in Europe after Madrid M-30

Autopista de Circunvalación M-30

The M-30 orbital motorway circles the central districts of Madrid, the capital city of Spain. It is the innermost ring road of the Spanish city. Outer rings are named M-40, M-45 and M-50....

and Södra Länken

Södra länken

Södra länken , National road 75 , is a motorway in Sweden connecting Essingeleden , Stockholm with Värmdöleden , Nacka. Södra länken is 6 km in length, of which 4.7 km is in tunnels. This makes it the second longest urban motorway tunnel in Europe after Madrid M30 orbital motorway...

in Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

, Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. When non-urban road tunnels are included, the Dublin Port Tunnel is shorter than some other European tunnels, such as the Lærdal Tunnel in Norway (24.5 km), the Gotthard Road Tunnel

Gotthard Road Tunnel

The St. Gotthard Tunnel in Switzerland runs from Göschenen in the Canton of Uri at its northern portal, to Airolo in Ticino to the south, and is just under in length below the St. Gotthard Pass...

in Switzerland (17 km), the Mont Blanc Tunnel

Mont Blanc Tunnel

The Mont Blanc Tunnel is a road tunnel in the Alps under the Mont Blanc mountain, linking Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France , and Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, Italy . It is one of the major trans-Alpine transport routes, particularly for Italy, which relies on the tunnel for transporting as much as...

between France and Italy (11.6 km) and the Western Scheldt Tunnel

Western Scheldt Tunnel

Western Scheldt Tunnel is a tunnel in The Netherlands on highway N62 under the Western Scheldt estuary between Ellewoutsdijk and Terneuzen. It is the longest tunnel for highway traffic in The Netherlands.-History:...

in The Netherlands (6.6 km).

Tunnel design

The tunnel is built in five distinct sections: two "cut and cover" sections, two bored sections, one through open-clay and one through hard limestone and a specialised pipe-jacked section under the Dublin-Belfast railway line.

Cut and cover

The “cut and cover” sections at both ends featured excavations as deep as 12 m into which horseshoe-shaped sections of cast concrete were dropped and backfilled. The southern section, at Fairview

Fairview, Dublin

Fairview is a coastal district on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland, in the jurisdiction of Dublin City Council. Part of the area forms Fairview Park, on land reclaimed from the sea.-Location and access:...

, is 500 m long while the northern cut and cover channel from Whitehall Church to Shantalla extends over 1500 m. This work was undertaken by the Mowlem

Mowlem

and Irishenco units of the consortium.

Tunnel boring

Both bored sections were initiated from a shaft 33 m deep and 57 m in diameter created at Collins Avenue by Mowlem in a joint venture with Intrafor of France. From here, the Tunnel Boring Machines

Tunnel boring machine

A tunnel boring machine also known as a "mole", is a machine used to excavate tunnels with a circular cross section through a variety of soil and rock strata. They can bore through anything from hard rock to sand. Tunnel diameters can range from a metre to almost 16 metres to date...

(TBM), managed by Nishimatsu, were sent north through open clay and south through hard limestone. As is traditional, both machines were named after women – Meghan for 650 m of open clay and Grainne for 2,600 m of limestone.

TBM-1 “Grainne” headed south, passing under Griffith Avenue, Marino

Marino

Marino, Mariño or Maryino may refer to:In places:* Marino, Lazio, a town in the province of Rome, Italy* Marino, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide* Marino, County Down in Northern Ireland...

and Fairview. It was then dismantled, turned around and used to bore a second tunnel for the southbound carriageway. The machine, designed by Herrenknecht

Herrenknecht

Herrenknecht AG is a German manufacturer of tunnel boring machines of all sizes. Herrenknecht is headquartered in Allmannsweier near Schwanau and is the world market leader for heavy tunnel boring machines...

of Germany, was 156 m long, 12 m in diameter and was delivered to Dublin port in 105 parts carried by three ships, taking one week to unload. Combined, these bores resulted in the removal of 500,000 m³ of rock.

A similar process was followed northwards by the 60 m long TBM-2 “Meghan” boring from Collins Avenue to Whitehall Church, first creating the southbound carriageway.

The bores were completed with breakthrough into the reception shaft on 18 November 2003 and 18 August 2004 for clay and rock, respectively. Much of the bored sections are 21–23 m below the surface, with the lowest point at Marino, towards the southern end, a point that also hosts the tunnel's drainage sump.

Pipe jacking

A particular challenge was faced near the southern portals where the tunnel passes under the Dublin to Belfast railway, a line that also carries suburban and commuter services. The railway was constructed on an elevated embankment made up of soft materials resting on alluvial deposits of sand and silt. Because the railway had to remain operational at all times, the cut and cover approach could not be used. Nishimatsu constructed a pipe-jacked supporting structure for the railway 3.5 m below the surface. The tunnel was then constructed in the supported space using horse-shoe sections and backfilled.

This 60 m section took 24 months to complete and resulted in the adjoining Alfie Byrne road being raised by 1.5 m. It also resulted in one incident of subsidence

Subsidence

Subsidence is the motion of a surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum such as sea-level. The opposite of subsidence is uplift, which results in an increase in elevation...

that closed the railway for three hours. This closure cost the contractor €300,000 in penalties - €100,000 per hour.

Other works

A new entrance and exit for the Dublin port was constructed including a new bridge over the Tolka river that connects to the toll plaza and southern portals. A new junction and underpass facilitates traffic from the East Wall Road towards the tunnel.

Citybound traffic approaching the tunnel on the M50 (formerly the M1 at this point) can utilise two tunnel-bound lanes or two surface lanes that continue as the N1 toward Whitehall. Traffic emerging at the southern portal approaches the toll plaza outside the port.

Tunnel operation

Following a tender process in 2005, the NRA selected Transroute International, part of France’s Groupe Egis, to operate the tunnel for a period of five years with an optional renewal of two years. The service contract provides for operation, maintenance, safety, traffic management and toll collection. A new subsidiary, Transroute Tunnel Operations Ireland Ltd, has been set up for the purpose. Tunnel operations, including tolling, employ between 50 and 60 people. The service contract is worth €15 million to Transroute over the five-year period.

Elsewhere, Egis was also selected to provide a central system to enable interoperability between different electronic toll collection systems in Ireland.

Tolling

The tunnel is tolled, with funds collected remitted to the Department of Transport. In order to facilitate the ban on 5-axled HGVs in Greater Dublin, there are no tolls for vehicles in excess of 3,500 kg MLW, or for vehicles capable of carrying 25 passengers or more.

The original tolling scheme saw three stages of tolling:

06:00-10:00 (Southbound) and 16:00-19:00 (Northbound) - €12
10:00-22:00 (Southbound), 06:00-16:00 (Northbound) and 19:00-22:00 (Northbound) - €6
22:00-06:00, and all day Saturday and Sunday, in both directions - €3

To alleviate congestion and due to extra capacity, these tolls have now been revised. As of 1 January 2010 the tolls are:

06:00-10:00 Monday-Friday (Southbound) - €10
16:00-19:00 Monday-Friday (Northbound) - €10
All other times - €3

The toll plaza is located beside the tunnel control building at the southern portal, near Dublin Port

Dublin Port

Dublin Port is Ireland's biggest sea port. It has both historical and contemporary economic importance. Approximatively two-thirds of the Republic of Ireland's port traffic goes via Dublin Port...

. To date, tolls have been payable either on an ad-hoc basis by cash, credit or debit card or electronically by using a tolling tag from a provider such as eFlow

EFlow

eFlow is a tolling brand name of a company in Ireland which manages the collection of tolls electronically. Is is best known for operating the "barrier free" tolling system which was introduced on the M50 motorway around Dublin on 30 August 2008....

. Cash payments are made either to a cashier, or by dropping coins only (5c denomination and above only) into an automatic counter in certain lanes.

BGA Fleming award

The project was joint winner in December 2003 of the British Geotechnical Association's international Fleming award for excellence in geotechnical design and construction. The award was for the innovative 'observational approach' used in optimising the design of the tunnel launch shaft in Whitehall, and for the soil-nailed open-cut section of the works accommodating the northern cut and cover tunnel. The award was shared with the recovery operation project for the World Trade Center

World Trade Center

The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...

, following the 2001 attack.

Safety features

There are 15 pedestrian crossing points (PCPs) situated 250 m apart with emergency telephone and fire fighting niches. Additional fire hose reels are located 125 m from each niche. There are four vehicle crossover points at 1 km intervals comprising a lay-by plus emergency and recovery area. These are located under Shantalla, Collins Avenue (site of the original launch shaft), Marino and Cloisters.

GSM telephone and FM

FM broadcasting

FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...

radio coverage is carried into the tunnel with break-in facilities over public broadcasts in the event of an emergency.

There are 420 cameras attached to the vehicle management system (VMS). A maximum speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph) is in place and HGVs are prevented from using the outside lane.

Overheight vehicles are detected up to 3 km from the tunnel portals and automatic signage is then deployed to stop the vehicle. If necessary, barriers can be lowered to protect the portals.

Safety lapses

RTE

Raidió Teilifís Éireann

Raidió Teilifís Éireann is a semi-state company and the public service broadcaster of Ireland. It both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet. The radio service began on January 1, 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on December 31, 1961, making...

's Prime Time

Prime Time

Prime Time is an Irish news analysis, current affairs and politics programme. It is broadcast on RTÉ One on Tuesday and Thursday nights between 21:30 and 22:10. It is currently presented by Miriam O'Callaghan, who has presented the programme since its commencement in 1996...

ran two reports (28 February and 4 March 2008) alleging that tunnel operator Transroute and the National Roads Authority

National Roads Authority

were keeping the tunnel open in situations contrary to the tunnel safety manual. These included:

SCADA
SCADA
SCADA generally refers to industrial control systems : computer systems that monitor and control industrial, infrastructure, or facility-based processes, as described below:...

computer system failures
Failure of the tunnel's jet fans used for fire fighting (up to fifteen in one incident)
Blockage of vehicle crossover points with water containers

The programme claimed that the tunnel safety manual had been re-written to allow the tunnel to remain open despite safety failures that would previously have required "immediate closure".

House damage

During the hard-rock boring works vibration caused some damage. Houses in the Marino area were surveyed before and after tunnelling and necessary repairs reimbursed. There were 241 claims and these were adjudicated by a loss adjuster. A fund of €1.5 million was set aside.

City centre ban

Dublin City Council's policy was to introduce a ban on trucks in the city centre between 7am and 7pm, but it agreed to delay this ban for a period of two months until 19 February 2007. This was because of opposition from the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC), the Irish Road Haulage Association

Irish Road Haulage Association

The Irish Road Haulage Association was founded in 1973 with the purpose of representing and promoting the interests of the licensed transport industry in Ireland and also abroad....

and the Dublin Port Company. The hauliers cite unreasonable traffic congestion on the M50, especially during the imminent widening of the northern section while IBEC and the Port Company are concerned about restrictions on free movement of goods.

The Sunday Independent ran a story on 12 November 2006 revealing the ban that came into force soon after as the Tunnel opened. Taoiseach Bertie Ahern reportedly put pressure on the Council to abandon their phased approach and initiate the ban in one go. The plan has been criticised by opposition parties who said such a move would simply dump the problem on to an already "dangerously crowded M50".

The M50

M50 motorway (Ireland)

ring road around Dublin has since been widened to 4 lanes (3 running lanes and 1 interconnecting lane between exits) in each direction and all of the interchanges are free-flow or partially free-flow since the end of 2010. This in effect negates the concerns regarding capacity.

East link tolls

One company located south of the Liffey, Marine Terminals Ltd, considered taking legal action against the Council if it went ahead with banning trucks from the city. This was because a ban would force the company to use the tunnel, which would mean crossing the privately owned and operated East-link toll bridge

East-Link (Dublin)

The East-Link is a toll bridge in Dublin, Ireland, on the River Liffey, owned by Dublin City Council and operated by NTR plc. The lifting bridge, which links North Wall to Ringsend, is the last bridge on the Liffey, which opens out into Dublin Port and then Dublin Bay just beyond...

, incurring a €4.80 charge each way. In response, the council agreed with National Toll Roads (NTR), the operator of the bridge, to lift the toll for trucks.

Height controversy

Even before the commencement of construction, the tunnel was criticised for not being high enough. Critics argued that it would not be able to accommodate heavy goods vehicles higher than 4.65 m (15 ft) and that it should be built with an operating height of 5.5 m to accommodate virtually all sizes of trucks. Proponents of the chosen design argued that it made best economic sense and that it would be able to accommodate most heavy vehicles with only a minor percentage having to use the surface road network. Construction went ahead as planned, but speaking at the breakthrough ceremony, Jimmy Quinn of the Irish Road Haulage Association stated that a future generation may look back and say (about the tunnel not being high enough for very high trucks): "Maybe they should have done it when they were building it."

Water leaks

In early 2006, media reports revealed that the tunnel was leaking substantial amounts of water. This was as a result of sub-standard concrete being poured. When the concrete was removed during remedial works, protective membranes were punctured, resulting in leaks. Once the membranes and concrete were re-instated, the leaks ceased.

Cost overruns

While it is often claimed that the project went over-budget, this is not actually the case. The tender price at €457 million was for construction only while the total project cost was approximately €752 million.

In September 2005, it was reported that NMI was launching a claim for an additional €300 million. The Council has stated that this claim will not be met and that the total project cost remains at €752 million.

Exit positioning

The Irish Road Haulage Association has alleged there is a problem facing drivers exiting the northbound tunnel. Recent changes in road traffic regulations prevent trucks and lorries from using the overtaking lane of motorways. The Irish Road Haulage Association stated as the tunnel exits in the "middle" of the M1 motorway, drivers therefore have to immediately cross two lanes of traffic to get into the correct driving lane.
However, the section of the M1 in question is limited to 80km/h and the ban on heavy vehicles etc using the right-most land only applies where the speed limit is over 80km/h.

Relocation of Dublin Port

In October 2006, as the tunnel neared completion, the Progressive Democrats

Progressive Democrats

The Progressive Democrats , commonly known as the PDs, was a pro-free market liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland.Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Malley and other politicians who had split from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the Progressive Democrats took liberal positions on...

held a conference on their proposal to relocate Dublin Port to Bremore

Bremore Port

Bremore Port is a proposed new deepwater port at Bremore, near Balbriggan, Ireland. It is being developed to provide an east coast deepwater port for Ireland to supplement the Drogheda and Dublin Port...

on the outskirts of Balbriggan

Balbriggan

Balbriggan is a town in the northern part of the administrative county of Fingal, within County Dublin, Ireland. The 2006 census population was 15,559 for Balbriggan and its environs.- Name :...

, and to redevelop the port area for mixed high density uses. The then Taoiseach

Taoiseach

, Bertie Ahern

Bertie Ahern

Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....

, indicated his support for this proposal. However this plan was abandoned following the wipeout of the PD's in the 2007 general election and the ongoing economic downturn.

Footnote

¹Following bankruptcy, the name and assets of this eponymous and long-standing Irish company were bought by Mowlem

Mowlem

before construction of the tunnel began. Today, Irishenco is possibly best described as an Irish-based branch of Mowlem

Mowlem

External links

Dublin port tunnel official website
Department of transport website
RTE News short report on the breakthrough
RTE News report on the breakthrough (Real video)
Nishimatsu website on the Dublin Port Tunnel
Mowlem
Herrenknecht AG — makers of the tunnel boring machine(s) used.
Groupe Egis — tunnel operators.

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Purpose

Port tunnel project

Tunnel specifications

Tunnel design

Cut and cover

Tunnel boring

Pipe jacking

Other works

Tunnel operation

Tolling

BGA Fleming award

Safety features

Safety lapses

House damage

City centre ban

East link tolls

Height controversy

Water leaks

Cost overruns

Exit positioning

Relocation of Dublin Port

Footnote

See also

External links