Blasting work started on the Ligerz tunnel
The aim of the project is to eliminate the last railroad bottleneck on the Jura river line between Lausanne and Biel. A new double-track tunnel is being built due to the confined space between the lake and the slope, where the N5 national road and the cantonal road also run.
After various preparatory works, which took over a year, the tunnel was opened last week for the 2.1 km long twin-track tunnel. The first few meters will be excavated mechanically using an excavator and excavation hammer, after which the tunnel will be excavated by blasting.
The excavated material (almost one million tons in total) will be delivered by ship to a nearby cement works as raw material. Around a tenth of the material will be used for a 228 m long lake embankment on the side of the tunnel portal towards Biel, where there is not enough space for a second track.
In addition to the double-track tunnel including concrete lining and railroad technology, the project also includes four escape tunnels connected to the safety tunnel of the N5 highway, a 114 m long viaduct for the N5 highway exit, two covered cuts at the two tunnel portals, the redesign of the cantonal road on the Biel side over a length of 400 m, as well as various additional structures. Once the work has been completed, the existing railroad line will be dismantled and redesigned.
Implenia is contributing its extensive expertise and many years of experience in the fields of civil engineering, tunnel construction, special civil engineering, engineering structures, railroad technology and maritime work to this major, challenging transportation infrastructure project.
