Miami port tunnel
Encyclopedia
The Port of Miami Tunnel is a major construction project in Miami, Florida, with an estimated cost of 1 billion US dollars. The project includes a 3/4 mile (1.1 km) long split portal automotive traffic tunnel connecting the MacArthur Causeway
on Watson Island and the Port of Miami
on Dodge Island
, as well as road improvements around the port. The project was temporarily cancelled in late 2008 due to the financial crisis
but was resumed in 2009, with construction commencing in May, 2010, and the tunnel is expected to open in May 2014.
A private consortium called Miami Access Tunnel LLC, now MAT Concessionaire LLC, is in charge of designing, building, operating and financing the project.
, to avoid a new tender that would delay even further the start of construction, the project was reinstated. Port director Bill Johnson has also played a key role in supporting the Port of Miami infrastructure projects, as well as developing a free-trade pact with Colombia. Altogether, the port infrastructure projects have an estimated cost of around two billion dollars.
Prior to 2008, the project had been estimated at a total cost of $3.1 billion USD, however the revised project has an estimated cost of $1 billion USD (The difference in estimates partially due to differences in previous tunnel designs). Financial closing on the project was reached in October, 2009. Miami-Dade County is expected to contribute $402 million, the city of Miami contributing $50 million, and the state giving $650 million to build, operate and maintain it. Those contributions are spread during construction and operation of the tunnel project. During construction, 90% of the funds are provided by the private sector. Of the estimated one billion dollar total project cost, 607 million it said to go to design and construction, 195.1 million to financing, 59.6 million to insurance and maintenance during construction, 41.2 million to reserves, and 209.8 million for state development cost.
, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria
, RBS Citizens, N.A., Banco Santander, Bayerische Hypo, Calyon, Dexia
, ING Capital
, Societe Generale
, and WestLB
will provide the senior debt financing for the project, which totals $341.5 million. The project attracted three bidding consortia comprising several of the most famous constructors and financiers in the world. Under the concession agreement, FDOT will make milestone payments to the concessionaire (Miami Access Tunnel) during the construction period, upon the achievement of contractual milestones. 90% of Miami Access Tunnel's equity is provided by Meridiam Infrastructure Miami LLC (Luxembourg based Meridiam Infrastructure Finance SARL), with the remaining 10% in France’s Bouygues Travaux Publics SA, operating as Dragages Concession Florida Inc. The Port of Miami Tunnel Project was one of the first P3's in Florida, and the first availability-based P3 deal in the US, after the Interstate 595
(I-595) renovation project in Broward County.
Once the construction is completed, FDOT will then make availability payments to the concessionaire. These payments will be contingent upon actual lane availability and service quality. In other words if the tunnel is closed for any reason or the road is in bad condition part or all of the payment for that period may not be made. The tunnel will be returned to FDOT in first-class condition at the end of the contract in October 2044, thirty years after the completion of the tunnel. Maintenance costs over this 30 year period are expected to total around $200 million. Contrary to many similar public-private partnerships, the tunnels will not have a toll.
by one lane in each direction leading up to the tunnel entrance, the relocation of Parrot Jungle Trail, and the reconstruction of roadways on Dodge Island
. The tunnel itself will have two side by side tubes carrying traffic underneath the cruise side of the Government Cut
shipping lane. Jacobs Engineering Group
is responsible for the design of the roadways while Bouygues
is the prime contractor for the tunnel project itself. Chosen due to their key involvement in the construction of the Channel Tunnel
, a major tunnel in Europe
, the selection of Bouygues was also met with controversy and protested by the Cuban exile
community in Miami, due to the company's involvement with locally opposed construction projects in Cuba.
The project will connect the east/west Interstate 395
(I-395)/Florida State Road 836, which terminates into State Route A1A at the Miami city limit on the MacArthur Causeway, as well as Interstate 95 directly to the Port of Miami. The port is currently only connected to the mainland by Port Boulevard, which is accessed by crossing US Route 1 (Biscayne Boulevard) and traveling through downtown. The project also includes roadway improvements to the connection between I-395 and Florida State Road 836, also known as the Dolphin Expressway, at Interstate 95. The tunnel will allow heavy trucks to bypass the congested Downtown Miami area, which is considered to be especially crucial with the large increase in trade traffic expected to be created by the Deep Dredge Project and the enlargement of the Panama Canal
. Projected to carry 26,000 vehicles a day under Government Cut
through a pair of tunnels that would each be two lanes wide, the top of the tunnel will lie a minimum of 60 feet (18.3 m) below the seabed. In addition, the tunnel project is expected to create 400 to 600 direct jobs, and, hand in hand with the Deep Dredge and Panama Canal Expansion, over 30,000 jobs in the long run. Project executives have promised that many of the construction jobs will go to local contractors.
Nearly 16,000 vehicles travel to and from the Port of Miami through downtown streets each weekday. Truck traffic makes up 28% (or 4,480) of this number (Source: 2009 PB Americas Traffic Study). In 2010 it was estimated that around 19,000 vehicles traveled to the port daily and that only 16% were trucks. Existing truck and bus routes restrict the port’s ability to grow, drive up costs for port users and present safety hazards. They also congest and limit redevelopment of the northern portion of Miami’s Central Business District.
The Port of Miami Tunnel includes providing a direct connection from the Port of Miami to highways via Watson Island to I-395 and, along with the deep dredge, keeping the Port of Miami, the County’s second largest economic generator (after Miami International Airport
), supporting over 11,000 jobs directly with an average salary of $50,000, a competitive player in international trade. The Port of Miami provides 176,000 jobs, $6.4 billion in wages and $17 billion in economic output. (Source: 2007 Port of Miami Economic Impact Study).
, the nickname of a tunnel megaproject
in Boston
, which was a $4 billion dollar project that ended up costing $22 billion in cost overruns. Many believe that the Port of Miami Tunnel Project will be likely to have similar cost overruns, even though the Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation
(FDOT) promised that the project would finish on time and without overruns. They also state that truck traffic is not a problem in Downtown, and that since 1991 car and truck traffic has reduced significantly. Downtown business owners have referred to it as the "tunnel to no where," stating that no one will use it. In 1992, 32,000 vehicles entered the port daily, a number which later dropped to nearly half that, but has recently risen to around 19,000. It has been regarded as a boondoggle project by those who oppose it, stating that the city can't afford it. In fact, the city did have difficulty providing it's $50 million portion of the funding for the project. Some believe it may create traffic problems on the MacArthur Causeway; environmentalists worry about the potentially negative impact the construction could have on the Biscayne Bay. An ominous foreshadowing of cost overruns, Miami Access Tunnel requested money from a $150 million reserve fund in July 2011 for the unexpected need to grout
the limestone
beneath the surface so that the tunnel boring machine cuts more smoothly. This request alarmed new Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos A. Giménez
when it was brought up at his first commissioners meeting as mayor on July 7. The contractor stated that they will continue without the additional requested money if FDOT denies it, but it may end up as a court case as the contractor seeks it later. On July 19, the FDOT denied the request for more money to the contractor, stating that the geoligical issue cited was not as extensive as MAT claimed.
and Panama Canal expansion, also slated to finish in 2014. The port has gone through several expensive projects throughout its history, and many have been seen as beneficial to the economic growth of the Greater Miami area in the long run, such as in the 1950s when the deteriorating Port of Miami, then located in the mainland in downtown, was moved to its current home, the man-made Dodge Island
. The current port director of the Port of Miami Bill Johnson states that these new port infrastructure projects should be able to double the port's container capacity over the next decade. Miami City Commissioner Marc Sarnoff stated that "This is the best public works project ever." A strong trade industry is also considered to be a vital sign of a good and improving economy.
In addition to the expected increase in cargo traffic, the Port of Miami recently stated that October 2010 was its busiest October ever for cruise vacations. The port had a record 346,513 cruise passengers that October, up 29% from October 2009. This follows a record year in cruise traffic, with 4.15 million cruise passengers in the 12 months that ended in September. This is partially due to the arrival of new cruise ships such as the Norwegian Epic, as well as the cruise line Costa Cruises
. Despite this, the Port of Miami has recently been losing cruise and cargo traffic to nearby Port Everglades
in Fort Lauderdale. In 2010, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, which is headquartered in Miami, chose Port Everglades as home for its new cruise ships, Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, currently the largest cruise ships in the world. As far as cargo traffic, truckers state that despite the longer miles, they can make more trips per day at Port Everglades. Also, they blame the port itself for this, not the Downtown traffic. They state that at Port Everglades, they can make three to four runs a day, versus Port of Miami where "you're lucky if you get in two," states truck driver Alejandro Arrieta, due to waiting time at the port, which is often several hours. Port Everglades also has major redevelopment plans underway that includes a deep dredging to a 50 feet (15.2 m) depth; they also claim to have surpassed the Port of Miami, which has long been known as the "Cruise Capital of the World" as well as the "Cargo Gateway to the Americas," in both cruise traffic and cargo tonnage handled.
(TIGER) program to restore a connection between the Florida East Coast Railway
's yard in Hialeah
and the Port of Miami, directly connect the port to the national railway system, as well as re-establish the port's on-dock rail capability (loading and unloading directly between ships and trains). The railroad bridge connecting the Port of Miami to the mainland was damaged by Hurricane Wilma
in 2005, at which time service was suspended, and the bridge remains closed as of 2010. There is no set date on when this project will be completed, but it is stated to be ready by the completion of the other projects in 2014. The rail project is part of another element of increasing Port of Miami's capacity, an inland intermodal center to be built near the airport known as Flagler Logistics Hub, which will be built over the next few years on 300 acres of land in Hialeah. Opposition to the railroad line returning to service is that it would be as much of a problem to downtown traffic as the container trucks and that the noise would be a disturbance to nearby residents. As with before, however, trains would be occasional and reserved for specialty loads, such as oversized loads and hazardous materials which will be banned from the tunnel. It was also stated that the trains, which will be able to go up to 30 mph on the newly renovated line versus the old limit of 5 mph, will be able to cross Biscayne Boulevard in 90 seconds. The current plan is for the line to be strictly for intermodal services, with the project including a rail yard and station at the port, however, in the future a passenger station may be added. The cost of restoring the rail link between the port and the Hialeah Railyard was estimated at $46.9 million, 28 million of which was applied for through a federal grant in 2010. Later that year, a grant of $22 million was awarded for this project, as well as to build an on site intermodal rail yard at the port. During the 2000's the percent of Florida East Coast Railway
's business has increased from around 60% to around 80% intermodal freight. However, this is partially due to a decrease in other freight traffic caused by the recession, which reduced the number of trains, many carrying rock aggregate used in construction, from about 20 to 14 per day. In addition to this, there is also a plan to start a passenger service line connecting Jacksonville
to Miami using the FECR mainline, with stops at popular tourist attractions. The State of Florida has provided $116 of the $268 million needed to fund this project. The remaining funding for the passenger line is expected to come from a federal grant, and the remaining funding to fix the local freight line from the Port to Hialeah is supposed to come from the Florida East Coast Railroad (FEC) at $10.9 million, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) at $10.9 million, and the Port of Miami itself providing 4.8 million. In April 2011, Atlas Railroad Construction was chosen to rebuild the line, which will be done by 2012 and is estimated to remove 5% of the roadway traffic from the port. On July 15, 2011, a groundbreaking ceremony that included US Senator Bill Nelson
, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood
, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Giménez
, as well as Miami city mayor Tomás Regalado
, was held for the beginning of the rail link project, which is expected to create over 800 jobs and $33.38 million in wages. The project has been named the Port of Miami Intermodal and Rail Reconnection Project.
is another major development planned for the area where congestion is a concern. Additionally, the population of Downtown Miami has nearly doubled since 2000 and is expected to increase by several thousand more by 2015, largely due to many new high rise condo developments in the downtown area adding thousands of housing units, as well as several planned new condo developments which will benefit from having the tunnel. Although traffic and port activity has declined since the early 90's, losing it to the nearby Port Everglades, which overtook Port of Miami in 2007 as Florida's largest cargo port, the port is likely to see a large shift in the other direction after it becomes one of few deep water ports in the United States able to handle the New Panamax ships in 2014.
It is also estimated that 46% to 80% of the passenger vehicles, many shuttle buses and taxis, which make up nearly three quarters of the total port traffic, that travel to and from the port will use the tunnel after it is completed.
, including its locks - are completed in 2014. This will allow much larger ships, known as New Panamax, which will have a capacity of more than double that of Panamax
ships to traverse the canal. As the Port of Miami is the closest American port on the eastern seaboard to the Panama Canal, it is expected to be the most desired port of call for ships inbound to the US from the eastern end of the canal. The current depth of the port is 42 feet (12.8 m), it will need to be dredged to a depth of 50 feet (15.2 m) to handle the new, larger ships that will navigate the enlarged Panama Canal. It is also the only port in the southeast that has both the funding and approval to become a deep water port. Currently, the only ports in the United States that meet the -50 feet criteria are the ports of Norfolk, New York and Baltimore. In March 2011, Florida governor Rick Scott amended the $77 million in funding the port needed to go ahead with the deep dredge. This funding, which was lobbied to be put in President Obama's 2012 budget, was instead taken from a $7 billion Florida transportation fund after the Obama Administration declined it. Part of the controversy surrounding federal funding for the project were the earmark
s that were to be used to put in on the bill, which then Governor-elect Rick Scott said he did not support. Scott also recently took a helicopter tour to see the Panama Canal expansion underway. The US Army Corps of Engineers will be responsible for the dredging, just as they were in the 1930s when the port was dredged from its original 18 feet (5.5 m) to a depth of 30 feet (9.1 m) after the S.S. Caledonia was unable to dock there in 1931, and again in the 1970's when the new, dedicated container port was created, with its own 42 feet (12.8 m) channel. This is predicted to cause a major increase in the Port of Miami's cargo traffic, which would overwhelm the intersection of Port Boulevard and Biscayne Boulevard without the tunnel. In 2009, 870,000 trucks moved cargo in and out of the port; and port officials estimate that that number will increase to around 1.4 million when larger ships start arriving. In 2010, about 800,000 TEU's were moved through the port, and port director Bill Johnson said that with the right marketing to major shippers, that number should double by 2020. Currently, the largest cargo ships that dock at the port have a capacity of around 4,200 TEU
's (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units). After the canal expansion and port dredging, ships as large as 7,500 to 8,500 TEU's will be able to dock there. In preparation for the deep dredge, the port has improved its retaining wall
s as well as added two new, taller and wider, gantry crane
s, which are capable of handling the world's largest container ships, which are nearly 200 feet (61 m) (22 TEU container widths) wide and have capacities greater than 10,000 TEUs. Experts have recently stated that with or without deep dredging, the Port of Miami, along with many other ports, will still benefit from the Panama Canal expansion as it will lead to more, not just bigger, ships traversing it, and that the ports that will be able to handle the bigger ships may have no room for the smaller ships, meaning that port traffic should increase with or without the deep dredge. It is expected that the increase in port traffic after the improvements will be gradual, increases steadily in the first few years.
is being built in Germany and will have to be re-assembled in Florida after arriving in crates on the 168 metres (551.2 ft) cargo ship Combi Dock 1 on Thursday, June 23, 2011 and being assembled in the median of the causeway where the construction is taking place. Both directions of the MacArthur Causeway will remain open during the assembly of the machine except for nighttime lane closures and delays on the westbound side. The machine, which will weigh more than 2,500 tons, will be assembled in a 65 feet (19.8 m) deep pit known as the launching pad located in between two concrete walls in the median of the causeway, which will only leave a 42 feet (12.8 m) cutter visible from the road. According to NBC Miami, as of June 2011, 899 jobs had been created by the project, with over 70% being from the 305 area code (Miami-Dade County). The construction is projected to take 47 months, with the tunnel being finished in 2014. The French firm Bouygues
Construction will be in charge of operating the tunnel boring machine, which will be longer than a football field, 540 feet (164.6 m) long, and over 40 feet (12.2 m) in diameter. It will be used to bore two side by side 43 feet (13.1 m) diameter tunnels, one for each direction, each 3,900 feet (1.1 km) long. The tunnel boring machine itself will cost $45 million and is being custom built for the Port of Miami Tunnel Project by the German firm Herrenknecht
. No explosives are said to be used on the construction of the tunnel. By April 2011, nearly 1000 people had worked on the preparation of the tunnel site; the tunnel boring machine will take several months to re-assemble after arriving in Florida, and the boring is scheduled to begin in the fall, likely in October, 2011. The first tunnel is expected to be finished by Spring 2012, the second by 2013, and the roadway construction should finish for an opening on May 15, 2014. The MacArthur Causeway
, which currently has three traffic lanes in each direction and a sidewalk on the eastbound side, will be widened to four 12 feet (3.7 m) wide traffic lanes with a ten foot inner and outer shoulder, as well as a six foot sidewalk.
In July 2011, a competition to name the tunnel boring machine was sponsored by MAT and the FDOT, and carried out by the Girl Scout Council of Tropical Florida. The nick-name "Harriet" was selected as the winner and the winning Troops 30, 134, and 1191 won iPod nanos.
Drilling of the tunnel itself commenced in mid-November 2011, with the drilling machine beginning work on the Watson Island tunnel entrance.
. They were supposed to be dumping the fill on Virginia Key on the degraded northwest side, but were found dumping it 80 to 100 yards (73.1 to 94.5 m) from the designated spot, where they damaged wetlands and killed about 40 mangrove trees with a piece of equipment that got stuck. The intention was that they would be allowed to put 55,000 cubic yards (42,050.5 m3) of fill there provided that they use it to build a berm to block the view of Virginia Key's sewage water treatment plant. The fill that was dumped on Virginia Key was mainly rock and soil from road construction and site preparation on Watson Island and not from tunnel boring, which environmentalists object being put on Virginia Key as it may not be as clean. The north point of Virginia Key, one of the last remaining undeveloped areas near the Miami downtown area, and has been recently restored as it was previously used as a dumping site for the infill from the Rickenbacker Causeway
, Miami Marine Stadium
, and Norris Cut. One other potential infill site that was briefly suggested is an inlet located between Bicentennial Park
and the American Airlines Arena on the mainland in downtown, where Miami-Dade County was conducting a study on the effects it would have. This proposal was quickly retracted after public outcry due to the fact that the currently closed off waterfront lot, known as "Parcel B," is slated to soon be a long anticipated public park. There has also been minor controversy over speculation that a yacht allegedly owned by Bouygues may have been bought with public money. A Bouygues spokesperson denied this claim. The owner of the seaplane base
on Watson Island has accused the tunnel builders of tresspassing for storing equipment on his property as well as for using the road that passes through his property. FDOT and city officials say the use of the land is permitted.
MacArthur Causeway
The General Douglas MacArthur Causeway is a six-lane causeway which connects Downtown, Miami, Florida and South Beach, Miami Beach via Biscayne Bay....
on Watson Island and the Port of Miami
Port of Miami
The Dante B. Fascell Port of Miami is a seaport located in Biscayne Bay in Miami, Florida, United States. It is connected to Downtown Miami by Port Boulevard, a bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway. The port is located on Dodge Island, which is the combination of three historic islands that have...
on Dodge Island
Dodge Island
Dodge Island is an artificial island in downtown Miami, Florida, United States. It contains the neighboorhood of Port of Miami and the port Port of Miami, the largest cruise ship port on earth....
, as well as road improvements around the port. The project was temporarily cancelled in late 2008 due to the financial crisis
Late-2000s financial crisis
The late-2000s financial crisis is considered by many economists to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s...
but was resumed in 2009, with construction commencing in May, 2010, and the tunnel is expected to open in May 2014.
A private consortium called Miami Access Tunnel LLC, now MAT Concessionaire LLC, is in charge of designing, building, operating and financing the project.
History
Although a tunnel connecting the Port of Miami to Watson Island was first proposed in the 1980s, when the House rejected President Ronald Regan's attempt to veto the bill to conduct a premilinary study and called it a "pork-barrel" project, when the port was only connected to the mainland by a two-lane drawbridge (the current six lane elevated bridge was built in the early 90's), it was not until 2006 that the tender for the tunnel project was ready to be launched and December 2007 that the project was approved by City Commission. However, the economic crisis resulted in a cancellation of the project in December 2008 by one of the sponsors, Babcock & Brown, and the State of Florida. Despite this, in April 2009, following intense lobbying by Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos AlvarezCarlos Alvarez (mayor)
Carlos Alvarez is a Cuban American politician, and the former mayor of Miami-Dade County. He was first elected mayor in 2004, and re-elected in 2008. His mayoralty ended in March 2011 after a recall election...
, to avoid a new tender that would delay even further the start of construction, the project was reinstated. Port director Bill Johnson has also played a key role in supporting the Port of Miami infrastructure projects, as well as developing a free-trade pact with Colombia. Altogether, the port infrastructure projects have an estimated cost of around two billion dollars.
Prior to 2008, the project had been estimated at a total cost of $3.1 billion USD, however the revised project has an estimated cost of $1 billion USD (The difference in estimates partially due to differences in previous tunnel designs). Financial closing on the project was reached in October, 2009. Miami-Dade County is expected to contribute $402 million, the city of Miami contributing $50 million, and the state giving $650 million to build, operate and maintain it. Those contributions are spread during construction and operation of the tunnel project. During construction, 90% of the funds are provided by the private sector. Of the estimated one billion dollar total project cost, 607 million it said to go to design and construction, 195.1 million to financing, 59.6 million to insurance and maintenance during construction, 41.2 million to reserves, and 209.8 million for state development cost.
Public-private partnership (PPP)
The tunnel project is a public-private partnership (PPP or P3) designed to transfer the responsibility to design-build-finance-operate-and-maintain (“DBFOM”) the project to the private sector. Ten banks, BNP ParibasBNP Paribas
BNP Paribas S.A. is a global banking group, headquartered in Paris, with its second global headquarters in London. In October 2010 BNP Paribas was ranked by Bloomberg and Forbes as the largest bank and largest company in the world by assets with over $3.1 trillion. It was formed through the merger...
, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. is a multinational Spanish banking group. It was formed in 1999 from the merger of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya and Argentaria, both of which in turn had previously amalgamated three important banks in Spain, namely Banco de Bilbao, Banco de Vizcaya, Banco Exterior de...
, RBS Citizens, N.A., Banco Santander, Bayerische Hypo, Calyon, Dexia
Dexia
Dexia N.V./S.A., also referred to as the Dexia Group, is a Belgian-French financial institution active in public finance, providing retail and commercial banking services to individuals and SMEs, asset management, and insurance...
, ING Capital
ING Group
The ING Group is a global financial institution offering retail banking, direct banking, commercial banking, investment banking, asset management, and insurance services. ING is the Dutch member of the Inter-Alpha Group of Banks, a cooperative consortium of 11 prominent European banks...
, Societe Generale
Société Générale
Société Générale S.A. is a large European Bank and a major Financial Services company that has a substantial global presence. Its registered office is on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, while its head office is in the Tours Société Générale in the business district of La...
, and WestLB
WestLB
WestLB AG is a European commercial bank based in Düsseldorf in Germany which is partly owned by the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The letters LB in the name stand for Landesbank. The Landesbanken are a group of state owned banks unique to Germany...
will provide the senior debt financing for the project, which totals $341.5 million. The project attracted three bidding consortia comprising several of the most famous constructors and financiers in the world. Under the concession agreement, FDOT will make milestone payments to the concessionaire (Miami Access Tunnel) during the construction period, upon the achievement of contractual milestones. 90% of Miami Access Tunnel's equity is provided by Meridiam Infrastructure Miami LLC (Luxembourg based Meridiam Infrastructure Finance SARL), with the remaining 10% in France’s Bouygues Travaux Publics SA, operating as Dragages Concession Florida Inc. The Port of Miami Tunnel Project was one of the first P3's in Florida, and the first availability-based P3 deal in the US, after the Interstate 595
Interstate 595 (Florida)
Interstate 595 , also known as the Port Everglades Expressway and as the unsigned State Road 862, is a Interstate highway that connects Interstate 75 and Alligator Alley in the west with Florida's Turnpike, Interstate 95, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, US 1, and SR A1A before...
(I-595) renovation project in Broward County.
Once the construction is completed, FDOT will then make availability payments to the concessionaire. These payments will be contingent upon actual lane availability and service quality. In other words if the tunnel is closed for any reason or the road is in bad condition part or all of the payment for that period may not be made. The tunnel will be returned to FDOT in first-class condition at the end of the contract in October 2044, thirty years after the completion of the tunnel. Maintenance costs over this 30 year period are expected to total around $200 million. Contrary to many similar public-private partnerships, the tunnels will not have a toll.
Overview
The Port of Miami Tunnel project involves the design and widening of the MacArthur CausewayMacArthur Causeway
The General Douglas MacArthur Causeway is a six-lane causeway which connects Downtown, Miami, Florida and South Beach, Miami Beach via Biscayne Bay....
by one lane in each direction leading up to the tunnel entrance, the relocation of Parrot Jungle Trail, and the reconstruction of roadways on Dodge Island
Dodge Island
Dodge Island is an artificial island in downtown Miami, Florida, United States. It contains the neighboorhood of Port of Miami and the port Port of Miami, the largest cruise ship port on earth....
. The tunnel itself will have two side by side tubes carrying traffic underneath the cruise side of the Government Cut
Government Cut
Government Cut is a manmade shipping channel between Miami Beach and Fisher Island, which allows better access to the Port of Miami in Miami, Florida...
shipping lane. Jacobs Engineering Group
Jacobs Engineering Group
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., a publicly traded company with over 50,000 employees and 2010 revenues of nearly $10 billion, provides technical, professional, and construction services globally. Headquartered in Pasadena, California, it was founded in 1947 by Dr. Joseph J. Jacobs. Jacobs offers...
is responsible for the design of the roadways while Bouygues
Bouygues
Bouygues S.A. is a French industrial group headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. Bouygues is listed on Euronext Paris exchange and is a blue chip in the CAC 40 stock market index. The company was founded in 1952 by Francis Bouygues and since 1989 has been led by his son Martin...
is the prime contractor for the tunnel project itself. Chosen due to their key involvement in the construction of the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
, a major tunnel in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, the selection of Bouygues was also met with controversy and protested by the Cuban exile
Cuban exile
The term "Cuban exile" refers to the many Cubans who have sought alternative political or economic conditions outside the island, dating back to the Ten Years' War and the struggle for Cuban independence during the 19th century...
community in Miami, due to the company's involvement with locally opposed construction projects in Cuba.
The project will connect the east/west Interstate 395
Interstate 395
Interstate 395 may refer to:*Interstate 395 , a spur from I-95 to Washington, D.C.*Interstate 395 , a spur from I-95 to Auburn, Massachusetts*Interstate 395 , a spur in Miami, Florida...
(I-395)/Florida State Road 836, which terminates into State Route A1A at the Miami city limit on the MacArthur Causeway, as well as Interstate 95 directly to the Port of Miami. The port is currently only connected to the mainland by Port Boulevard, which is accessed by crossing US Route 1 (Biscayne Boulevard) and traveling through downtown. The project also includes roadway improvements to the connection between I-395 and Florida State Road 836, also known as the Dolphin Expressway, at Interstate 95. The tunnel will allow heavy trucks to bypass the congested Downtown Miami area, which is considered to be especially crucial with the large increase in trade traffic expected to be created by the Deep Dredge Project and the enlargement of the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
. Projected to carry 26,000 vehicles a day under Government Cut
Government Cut
Government Cut is a manmade shipping channel between Miami Beach and Fisher Island, which allows better access to the Port of Miami in Miami, Florida...
through a pair of tunnels that would each be two lanes wide, the top of the tunnel will lie a minimum of 60 feet (18.3 m) below the seabed. In addition, the tunnel project is expected to create 400 to 600 direct jobs, and, hand in hand with the Deep Dredge and Panama Canal Expansion, over 30,000 jobs in the long run. Project executives have promised that many of the construction jobs will go to local contractors.
Nearly 16,000 vehicles travel to and from the Port of Miami through downtown streets each weekday. Truck traffic makes up 28% (or 4,480) of this number (Source: 2009 PB Americas Traffic Study). In 2010 it was estimated that around 19,000 vehicles traveled to the port daily and that only 16% were trucks. Existing truck and bus routes restrict the port’s ability to grow, drive up costs for port users and present safety hazards. They also congest and limit redevelopment of the northern portion of Miami’s Central Business District.
The Port of Miami Tunnel includes providing a direct connection from the Port of Miami to highways via Watson Island to I-395 and, along with the deep dredge, keeping the Port of Miami, the County’s second largest economic generator (after Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport , also known as MIA and historically Wilcox Field, is the primary airport serving the South Florida area...
), supporting over 11,000 jobs directly with an average salary of $50,000, a competitive player in international trade. The Port of Miami provides 176,000 jobs, $6.4 billion in wages and $17 billion in economic output. (Source: 2007 Port of Miami Economic Impact Study).
Criticism
According to the Miami Herald the financing structure of the plan is notable for the amount of financial risk taken by the builders in return for the long term concession on the tunnel. Opposition to the project states that it is a waste of taxpayer money, and may become Miami's Big DigBig Dig
The Central Artery/Tunnel Project , known unofficially as the Big Dig and as the Big Dug since completion, was a megaproject in Boston that rerouted the Central Artery , the chief highway through the heart of the city, into a 3.5-mile tunnel...
, the nickname of a tunnel megaproject
Megaproject
A megaproject is an extremely large-scale investment project. Megaprojects are typically defined as costing more than US$1 billion and attracting a lot of public attention because of substantial impacts on communities, environment, and budgets. Megaprojects can also be defined as "initiatives that...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, which was a $4 billion dollar project that ended up costing $22 billion in cost overruns. Many believe that the Port of Miami Tunnel Project will be likely to have similar cost overruns, even though the Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation
Florida Department of Transportation
The Florida Department of Transportation is a decentralized agency charged with the establishment, maintenance, and regulation of public transportation in the state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the powers of the Florida State Road Department...
(FDOT) promised that the project would finish on time and without overruns. They also state that truck traffic is not a problem in Downtown, and that since 1991 car and truck traffic has reduced significantly. Downtown business owners have referred to it as the "tunnel to no where," stating that no one will use it. In 1992, 32,000 vehicles entered the port daily, a number which later dropped to nearly half that, but has recently risen to around 19,000. It has been regarded as a boondoggle project by those who oppose it, stating that the city can't afford it. In fact, the city did have difficulty providing it's $50 million portion of the funding for the project. Some believe it may create traffic problems on the MacArthur Causeway; environmentalists worry about the potentially negative impact the construction could have on the Biscayne Bay. An ominous foreshadowing of cost overruns, Miami Access Tunnel requested money from a $150 million reserve fund in July 2011 for the unexpected need to grout
Grout
Grout is a construction material used to embed rebars in masonry walls, connect sections of pre-cast concrete, fill voids, and seal joints . Grout is generally composed of a mixture of water, cement, sand, often color tint, and sometimes fine gravel...
the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
beneath the surface so that the tunnel boring machine cuts more smoothly. This request alarmed new Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos A. Giménez
Carlos A. Gimenez
Carlos A. Giménez is a Cuban American retired firefighter and Mayor of Miami-Dade County, Florida, elected to office June 28, 2011 in a special election...
when it was brought up at his first commissioners meeting as mayor on July 7. The contractor stated that they will continue without the additional requested money if FDOT denies it, but it may end up as a court case as the contractor seeks it later. On July 19, the FDOT denied the request for more money to the contractor, stating that the geoligical issue cited was not as extensive as MAT claimed.
Benefits/related projects
Although there is great speculation that the Port of Miami Tunnel project is both unnecessary and a waste of taxpayer dollars, it is expected to have positive benefits in the long run which coincide with several other related projects predicted to increase its traffic, many, such as the Port of Miami Deep Dredge ProjectPort of Miami Deep Dredge Project
The Port of Miami Deep Dredge Project is a planned project to expand the Port of Miami by dredging the bay to allow new, larger cargo ships to enter the port. This project is related to the "New Panamax" project to be completed by 2014 that involves a major expansion of the Panama Canal...
and Panama Canal expansion, also slated to finish in 2014. The port has gone through several expensive projects throughout its history, and many have been seen as beneficial to the economic growth of the Greater Miami area in the long run, such as in the 1950s when the deteriorating Port of Miami, then located in the mainland in downtown, was moved to its current home, the man-made Dodge Island
Dodge Island
Dodge Island is an artificial island in downtown Miami, Florida, United States. It contains the neighboorhood of Port of Miami and the port Port of Miami, the largest cruise ship port on earth....
. The current port director of the Port of Miami Bill Johnson states that these new port infrastructure projects should be able to double the port's container capacity over the next decade. Miami City Commissioner Marc Sarnoff stated that "This is the best public works project ever." A strong trade industry is also considered to be a vital sign of a good and improving economy.
Cruise traffic
Costa Cruises
Costa Cruises is a British-American owned Italian cruise line, based in Genoa, Italy.Founded in 1924, the company originally operated cargo ships, until the introduction of passenger services in 1947, with regular services between Italy and South America...
. Despite this, the Port of Miami has recently been losing cruise and cargo traffic to nearby Port Everglades
Port Everglades
Port Everglades is a port in Broward County, Florida. As one of South Florida's leading economic powerhouses, Port Everglades is the gateway for international trade and cruise vacations. Already one of the three busiest cruise ports worldwide, Port Everglades is also one of Florida's leading...
in Fort Lauderdale. In 2010, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, which is headquartered in Miami, chose Port Everglades as home for its new cruise ships, Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas, currently the largest cruise ships in the world. As far as cargo traffic, truckers state that despite the longer miles, they can make more trips per day at Port Everglades. Also, they blame the port itself for this, not the Downtown traffic. They state that at Port Everglades, they can make three to four runs a day, versus Port of Miami where "you're lucky if you get in two," states truck driver Alejandro Arrieta, due to waiting time at the port, which is often several hours. Port Everglades also has major redevelopment plans underway that includes a deep dredging to a 50 feet (15.2 m) depth; they also claim to have surpassed the Port of Miami, which has long been known as the "Cruise Capital of the World" as well as the "Cargo Gateway to the Americas," in both cruise traffic and cargo tonnage handled.
Railroad access
The Port of Miami was also recently awarded a federal grant as part of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic RecoveryTransportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery
Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery is a supplementary discretionary grant program included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009...
(TIGER) program to restore a connection between the Florida East Coast Railway
Florida East Coast Railway
The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida; in the past, it has been a Class I railroad.Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a project of Standard Oil principal Henry Morrison...
's yard in Hialeah
Hialeah, Florida
Hialeah is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 226,419. As of 2009, the population estimate by the U. S...
and the Port of Miami, directly connect the port to the national railway system, as well as re-establish the port's on-dock rail capability (loading and unloading directly between ships and trains). The railroad bridge connecting the Port of Miami to the mainland was damaged by Hurricane Wilma
Hurricane Wilma
Hurricane Wilma was the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Atlantic basin. Wilma was the twenty-second storm , thirteenth hurricane, sixth major hurricane, and fourth Category 5 hurricane of the record-breaking 2005 season...
in 2005, at which time service was suspended, and the bridge remains closed as of 2010. There is no set date on when this project will be completed, but it is stated to be ready by the completion of the other projects in 2014. The rail project is part of another element of increasing Port of Miami's capacity, an inland intermodal center to be built near the airport known as Flagler Logistics Hub, which will be built over the next few years on 300 acres of land in Hialeah. Opposition to the railroad line returning to service is that it would be as much of a problem to downtown traffic as the container trucks and that the noise would be a disturbance to nearby residents. As with before, however, trains would be occasional and reserved for specialty loads, such as oversized loads and hazardous materials which will be banned from the tunnel. It was also stated that the trains, which will be able to go up to 30 mph on the newly renovated line versus the old limit of 5 mph, will be able to cross Biscayne Boulevard in 90 seconds. The current plan is for the line to be strictly for intermodal services, with the project including a rail yard and station at the port, however, in the future a passenger station may be added. The cost of restoring the rail link between the port and the Hialeah Railyard was estimated at $46.9 million, 28 million of which was applied for through a federal grant in 2010. Later that year, a grant of $22 million was awarded for this project, as well as to build an on site intermodal rail yard at the port. During the 2000's the percent of Florida East Coast Railway
Florida East Coast Railway
The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida; in the past, it has been a Class I railroad.Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a project of Standard Oil principal Henry Morrison...
's business has increased from around 60% to around 80% intermodal freight. However, this is partially due to a decrease in other freight traffic caused by the recession, which reduced the number of trains, many carrying rock aggregate used in construction, from about 20 to 14 per day. In addition to this, there is also a plan to start a passenger service line connecting Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
to Miami using the FECR mainline, with stops at popular tourist attractions. The State of Florida has provided $116 of the $268 million needed to fund this project. The remaining funding for the passenger line is expected to come from a federal grant, and the remaining funding to fix the local freight line from the Port to Hialeah is supposed to come from the Florida East Coast Railroad (FEC) at $10.9 million, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) at $10.9 million, and the Port of Miami itself providing 4.8 million. In April 2011, Atlas Railroad Construction was chosen to rebuild the line, which will be done by 2012 and is estimated to remove 5% of the roadway traffic from the port. On July 15, 2011, a groundbreaking ceremony that included US Senator Bill Nelson
Bill Nelson
Clarence William "Bill" Nelson is the senior United States Senator from the state of Florida and a member of the Democratic Party. He is a former U.S. Representative and former Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner of Florida...
, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood
Ray LaHood
Raymond H. "Ray" LaHood is a Republican politician from Illinois who is currently the United States Secretary of Transportation, having served since 2009. Previously, he represented the Illinois's 18th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for seven terms .-Early life and...
, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Giménez
Carlos A. Gimenez
Carlos A. Giménez is a Cuban American retired firefighter and Mayor of Miami-Dade County, Florida, elected to office June 28, 2011 in a special election...
, as well as Miami city mayor Tomás Regalado
Tomás Regalado (American politician)
Tomás Pedro Regalado is a former broadcast journalist and current mayor of Miami, Florida.He served as the news director for Radio Mambi WAQI and as a reporter for Univision...
, was held for the beginning of the rail link project, which is expected to create over 800 jobs and $33.38 million in wages. The project has been named the Port of Miami Intermodal and Rail Reconnection Project.
Downtown congestion
Another major benefit of the tunnel will be the redirecting of the large amount of vehicles (nearly 16,000 daily; 2009 estimate), many of them container trucks and cruise buses, that cross Biscayne Boulevard (US 1) at NW 5th Street (Port Boulevard), using level streets, such as Northeast 1st Avenue, which are currently the only way to access the port. Along with the capacity of the port, the amount of truck traffic could double after the completion of several projects in 2014. Additionally the entrance to the port is closed at night, concentrating all truck traffic during the day. This traffic creates congestion and presents a danger to pedestrians and bicyclists. Traffic is also considered to be a harm to Miami's northern central business district, reducing its ability to grow, including the new arts and entertainment (Omni) district, valued at over $12 billion. The developers for another planned project for the north side of downtown, known as Miami City Square, stated that the heavy truck traffic and congestion in that area was a "grave concern." The Omni Community Redevelopment Agency used a $50 million loan from Wachovia to donate towards financing the tunnel construction. World Resorts Miami by Genting GroupGenting Group
Genting Group is an Asian conglomerate. It comprises four listed entities Genting Group is an Asian conglomerate. It comprises four listed entities Genting Group is an Asian conglomerate. It comprises four listed entities (namely holding company Genting Berhad (MYX:3182) and its member companies...
is another major development planned for the area where congestion is a concern. Additionally, the population of Downtown Miami has nearly doubled since 2000 and is expected to increase by several thousand more by 2015, largely due to many new high rise condo developments in the downtown area adding thousands of housing units, as well as several planned new condo developments which will benefit from having the tunnel. Although traffic and port activity has declined since the early 90's, losing it to the nearby Port Everglades, which overtook Port of Miami in 2007 as Florida's largest cargo port, the port is likely to see a large shift in the other direction after it becomes one of few deep water ports in the United States able to handle the New Panamax ships in 2014.
It is also estimated that 46% to 80% of the passenger vehicles, many shuttle buses and taxis, which make up nearly three quarters of the total port traffic, that travel to and from the port will use the tunnel after it is completed.
Deep Dredge/Panama Canal expansion
The tunnel project is intended to open at the same time as two other projects, the Port of Miami Deep Dredge and the Panama Canal expansion - the enlargement of the Panama CanalPanama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
, including its locks - are completed in 2014. This will allow much larger ships, known as New Panamax, which will have a capacity of more than double that of Panamax
Panamax
Panamax and New Panamax are popular terms for the size limits for ships traveling through the Panama Canal. Formally, the limits and requirements are published by the Panama Canal Authority titled "Vessel Requirements"...
ships to traverse the canal. As the Port of Miami is the closest American port on the eastern seaboard to the Panama Canal, it is expected to be the most desired port of call for ships inbound to the US from the eastern end of the canal. The current depth of the port is 42 feet (12.8 m), it will need to be dredged to a depth of 50 feet (15.2 m) to handle the new, larger ships that will navigate the enlarged Panama Canal. It is also the only port in the southeast that has both the funding and approval to become a deep water port. Currently, the only ports in the United States that meet the -50 feet criteria are the ports of Norfolk, New York and Baltimore. In March 2011, Florida governor Rick Scott amended the $77 million in funding the port needed to go ahead with the deep dredge. This funding, which was lobbied to be put in President Obama's 2012 budget, was instead taken from a $7 billion Florida transportation fund after the Obama Administration declined it. Part of the controversy surrounding federal funding for the project were the earmark
Earmark (politics)
In United States politics, an earmark is a legislative provision that directs approved funds to be spent on specific projects, or that directs specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees...
s that were to be used to put in on the bill, which then Governor-elect Rick Scott said he did not support. Scott also recently took a helicopter tour to see the Panama Canal expansion underway. The US Army Corps of Engineers will be responsible for the dredging, just as they were in the 1930s when the port was dredged from its original 18 feet (5.5 m) to a depth of 30 feet (9.1 m) after the S.S. Caledonia was unable to dock there in 1931, and again in the 1970's when the new, dedicated container port was created, with its own 42 feet (12.8 m) channel. This is predicted to cause a major increase in the Port of Miami's cargo traffic, which would overwhelm the intersection of Port Boulevard and Biscayne Boulevard without the tunnel. In 2009, 870,000 trucks moved cargo in and out of the port; and port officials estimate that that number will increase to around 1.4 million when larger ships start arriving. In 2010, about 800,000 TEU's were moved through the port, and port director Bill Johnson said that with the right marketing to major shippers, that number should double by 2020. Currently, the largest cargo ships that dock at the port have a capacity of around 4,200 TEU
Twenty-foot equivalent unit
The twenty-foot equivalent unit is an inexact unit of cargo capacity often used to describe the capacity of container ships and container terminals...
's (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units). After the canal expansion and port dredging, ships as large as 7,500 to 8,500 TEU's will be able to dock there. In preparation for the deep dredge, the port has improved its retaining wall
Retaining wall
Retaining walls are built in order to hold back earth which would otherwise move downwards. Their purpose is to stabilize slopes and provide useful areas at different elevations, e.g...
s as well as added two new, taller and wider, gantry crane
Gantry crane
Gantry cranes, bridge cranes, and overhead cranes, are all types of cranes which lift objects by a hoist which is fitted in a hoist trolley and can move horizontally on a rail or pair of rails fitted under a beam...
s, which are capable of handling the world's largest container ships, which are nearly 200 feet (61 m) (22 TEU container widths) wide and have capacities greater than 10,000 TEUs. Experts have recently stated that with or without deep dredging, the Port of Miami, along with many other ports, will still benefit from the Panama Canal expansion as it will lead to more, not just bigger, ships traversing it, and that the ports that will be able to handle the bigger ships may have no room for the smaller ships, meaning that port traffic should increase with or without the deep dredge. It is expected that the increase in port traffic after the improvements will be gradual, increases steadily in the first few years.
Construction
Work on the Port of Miami Tunnel project began on Watson Island and Dodge Island, including work on the MacArthur Causeway, in May 2010. Groundbreaking on the construction project was unannounced and considered secret, as the groundbreaking was scheduled for June 2010, but actually took place on May 24, 2010, without ceremony. The tunnel boring machineTunnel 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...
is being built in Germany and will have to be re-assembled in Florida after arriving in crates on the 168 metres (551.2 ft) cargo ship Combi Dock 1 on Thursday, June 23, 2011 and being assembled in the median of the causeway where the construction is taking place. Both directions of the MacArthur Causeway will remain open during the assembly of the machine except for nighttime lane closures and delays on the westbound side. The machine, which will weigh more than 2,500 tons, will be assembled in a 65 feet (19.8 m) deep pit known as the launching pad located in between two concrete walls in the median of the causeway, which will only leave a 42 feet (12.8 m) cutter visible from the road. According to NBC Miami, as of June 2011, 899 jobs had been created by the project, with over 70% being from the 305 area code (Miami-Dade County). The construction is projected to take 47 months, with the tunnel being finished in 2014. The French firm Bouygues
Bouygues
Bouygues S.A. is a French industrial group headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. Bouygues is listed on Euronext Paris exchange and is a blue chip in the CAC 40 stock market index. The company was founded in 1952 by Francis Bouygues and since 1989 has been led by his son Martin...
Construction will be in charge of operating the tunnel boring machine, which will be longer than a football field, 540 feet (164.6 m) long, and over 40 feet (12.2 m) in diameter. It will be used to bore two side by side 43 feet (13.1 m) diameter tunnels, one for each direction, each 3,900 feet (1.1 km) long. The tunnel boring machine itself will cost $45 million and is being custom built for the Port of Miami Tunnel Project by the German firm 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...
. No explosives are said to be used on the construction of the tunnel. By April 2011, nearly 1000 people had worked on the preparation of the tunnel site; the tunnel boring machine will take several months to re-assemble after arriving in Florida, and the boring is scheduled to begin in the fall, likely in October, 2011. The first tunnel is expected to be finished by Spring 2012, the second by 2013, and the roadway construction should finish for an opening on May 15, 2014. The MacArthur Causeway
MacArthur Causeway
The General Douglas MacArthur Causeway is a six-lane causeway which connects Downtown, Miami, Florida and South Beach, Miami Beach via Biscayne Bay....
, which currently has three traffic lanes in each direction and a sidewalk on the eastbound side, will be widened to four 12 feet (3.7 m) wide traffic lanes with a ten foot inner and outer shoulder, as well as a six foot sidewalk.
In July 2011, a competition to name the tunnel boring machine was sponsored by MAT and the FDOT, and carried out by the Girl Scout Council of Tropical Florida. The nick-name "Harriet" was selected as the winner and the winning Troops 30, 134, and 1191 won iPod nanos.
Drilling of the tunnel itself commenced in mid-November 2011, with the drilling machine beginning work on the Watson Island tunnel entrance.
Controversies
In March 2011, one of the sub contractors of Bouygues fell under criticism for the dumping of tunnel fill on sensitive wetlands on Virginia KeyVirginia Key
Virginia Key is a barrier island in Miami, Florida, United States in Biscayne Bay, south of Brickell and north of Key Biscayne. It accessible from the mainland via the Rickenbacker Causeway....
. They were supposed to be dumping the fill on Virginia Key on the degraded northwest side, but were found dumping it 80 to 100 yards (73.1 to 94.5 m) from the designated spot, where they damaged wetlands and killed about 40 mangrove trees with a piece of equipment that got stuck. The intention was that they would be allowed to put 55,000 cubic yards (42,050.5 m3) of fill there provided that they use it to build a berm to block the view of Virginia Key's sewage water treatment plant. The fill that was dumped on Virginia Key was mainly rock and soil from road construction and site preparation on Watson Island and not from tunnel boring, which environmentalists object being put on Virginia Key as it may not be as clean. The north point of Virginia Key, one of the last remaining undeveloped areas near the Miami downtown area, and has been recently restored as it was previously used as a dumping site for the infill from the Rickenbacker Causeway
Rickenbacker Causeway
The Rickenbacker Causeway connects Miami, Florida, United States to the barrier islands of Virginia Key and Key Biscayne across Biscayne Bay.-Background:...
, Miami Marine Stadium
Miami Marine Stadium
The Miami Marine Stadium is a marine stadium on Virginia Key, Miami, Florida, United States. The facility, built and completed in 1963 on land donated to the City of Miami from the Matheson family, is the first stadium purpose-built for powerboat racing in the United States.-History:The 6,566 seat...
, and Norris Cut. One other potential infill site that was briefly suggested is an inlet located between Bicentennial Park
Bicentennial Park
Bicentennial Park may refer to:In Australia:* Bicentennial Park, Homebush Bay in Sydney, New South Wales* Bicentennial Park, Rockdale in the Sydney suburb of Rockdale* Bicentennial Park South Football Stadium in the Sydney suburb of Rockdale...
and the American Airlines Arena on the mainland in downtown, where Miami-Dade County was conducting a study on the effects it would have. This proposal was quickly retracted after public outcry due to the fact that the currently closed off waterfront lot, known as "Parcel B," is slated to soon be a long anticipated public park. There has also been minor controversy over speculation that a yacht allegedly owned by Bouygues may have been bought with public money. A Bouygues spokesperson denied this claim. The owner of the seaplane base
Miami Seaplane Base
Miami Seaplane Base is a public-use seaplane base located east of the central business district of Miami on Watson Island in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The seaplane base is publicly owned.-History:...
on Watson Island has accused the tunnel builders of tresspassing for storing equipment on his property as well as for using the road that passes through his property. FDOT and city officials say the use of the land is permitted.
See also
- Port of Miami Deep Dredge ProjectPort of Miami Deep Dredge ProjectThe Port of Miami Deep Dredge Project is a planned project to expand the Port of Miami by dredging the bay to allow new, larger cargo ships to enter the port. This project is related to the "New Panamax" project to be completed by 2014 that involves a major expansion of the Panama Canal...
- New Panamax
- Panama Canal expansion project