Final tunnel construction begins for Toronto’s Eglinton transit extension project

According to Metrolinx, crews in Toronto have begun the final phase of construction for tunnels that will connect the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension to the existing terminus of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT (Line 5 Eglinton) at Mount Dennis Station in Toronto, Canada.  

Last year, the contract to design and build the second underground segment of the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension was awarded to Strabag Inc.

The 1,640-foot (500-meter) twin tunnels are being built using the sequential excavation method, which is often used for smaller sections of tunnels, Metrolinx reported. With this method, the area to be tunneled is divided into smaller sections and excavated in sequence. Concrete is then sprayed onto the tunnel walls as the sections are excavated to reinforce the exposed walls. About one to two meters of tunnel are excavated each day.  

Last year, twin tunnel boring machines Renny and Rexy completed a two-year project in which they excavated a 3.91-mile (6.3-kilometer) stretch of the western tunneled section of the line. At the end of the twin tunnel section is where the future rapid transit line will transition to an above-ground section.

The extension will make Line 5 Eglinton another expansive east-west rapid transit line for the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), running all the way from Scarborough, through midtown Toronto and into Mississauga. The project will add seven new stations to Line 5 Eglinton’s 25 stations and stops.

 

 

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