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113-680: The Uptown Hudson Tubes are a pair of tunnels that carry PATH trains between Manhattan , New York City , to the east and Jersey City, New Jersey , to the west. The tubes originate at a junction of two PATH lines on the New Jersey shore and cross eastward under the Hudson River . On the Manhattan side, the tubes run mostly underneath Christopher Street and Sixth Avenue , making four intermediate stops before terminating at 33rd Street station . The tubes do not enter Uptown Manhattan ;

226-695: A canal . The central portions of a rapid transit network are usually in the tunnel. Some tunnels are used as sewers or aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations. Utility tunnels are used for routing steam, chilled water, electrical power or telecommunication cables, as well as connecting buildings for convenient passage of people and equipment. Secret tunnels are built for military purposes, or by civilians for smuggling of weapons , contraband , or people . Special tunnels, such as wildlife crossings , are built to allow wildlife to cross human-made barriers safely. Tunnels can be connected together in tunnel networks . A tunnel

339-449: A large factor in the decision making process. Civil engineers usually use project management techniques for developing a major structure. Understanding the amount of time the project requires, and the amount of labor and materials needed is a crucial part of project planning. The project duration must be identified using a work breakdown structure and critical path method . Also, the land needed for excavation and construction staging, and

452-413: A new device developed by Greathead, a pneumatic shield called the "Greathead Shield", to extend the tunnel by 1,600 feet (490 m). With a concentration of rock directly underneath the clay riverbed, the tube was aligned to pass directly above it, with very little clearance. To maintain sufficient air pressure inside, S. Pearson & Son decided to place a silt layer of at least 15 feet (4.6 m) above

565-501: A new subway line through Midtown Manhattan, which would connect with the Uptown Hudson Tubes; the company received the sole rights to operate this line for a duration of 25 years. The Midtown Manhattan line would travel eastward under Christopher Street before turning northeastward under Sixth Avenue , then continue underneath Sixth Avenue to a terminus at 33rd Street . The New York City Board of Aldermen expressed that

678-462: A pair of tunnels 16 feet (4.9 m) wide by 18 feet (5.5 m) high. The construction method used at the time did not employ a tunneling shield ; rather, air compressors maintained pressure against the water-laden silt that was being tunneled through. Haskin believed the river silt was strong enough to maintain the tunnel's form—with the help of compressed air—until a 2-foot-6-inch-thick (76 cm) brick lining could be constructed. Haskin's plan

791-467: A pipe jack, with the span of some box jacks in excess of 20 metres (66 ft). A cutting head is normally used at the front of the box being jacked, and spoil removal is normally by excavator from within the box. Recent developments of the Jacked Arch and Jacked deck have enabled longer and larger structures to be installed to close accuracy. There are also several approaches to underwater tunnels,

904-502: A plan for a network of train lines connecting New Jersey and New York City. The Morton Street Tunnel became known as the Uptown Hudson Tubes, complementing a pair of downtown tunnels that McAdoo had planned to connect Jersey City with Lower Manhattan. The idea for the downtown tunnels was actually conceived by another company, the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Corporation (H&M), in 1903, but McAdoo's New York and Jersey Railroad Company

1017-504: A similar elevation. The 19th Street station was not affected because the IND tracks were located below the H&;M tracks at that point. The 33rd Street terminal closed on December 26, 1937, and service on the H&M was cut back to 28th Street to allow for construction on the subway to take place. A temporary 29th Street entrance was installed at the 28th Street station. The 33rd Street terminal

1130-412: A single track pass over or under other tracks to avoid conflict; complex flying junctions may have elaborate infrastructure to allow multiple routings without trains coming into conflict, in the manner of a highway stack interchange . Where two lines each of two tracks merge with a flying junction, they can become a four-track railway together, the tracks paired by direction. This happens regularly in

1243-604: A single tube 26 feet (7.9 m) wide by 24 feet (7.3 m) high. Trains from five railroad companies on the New Jersey side would have been hauled by special steam locomotives that would be able to emit very little steam. The engines would have continued through the tube to Manhattan, terminating at a railroad hub in Washington Square Park . This tunnel project was known as the Morton Street Tunnel . Work had progressed for only one month when it

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1356-421: A specialized method called clay-kicking for digging tunnels in clay-based soils. The clay-kicker lies on a plank at a 45-degree angle away from the working face and rather than a mattock with his hands, inserts with his feet a tool with a cup-like rounded end, then turns the tool with his hands to extract a section of soil, which is then placed on the waste extract. Clay-kicking is a specialized method developed in

1469-433: A temporary narrow-gauge railway. In some cases, the silt would be baked with kerosene torches to facilitate easier removal of the mud. The cast iron lining would then be placed on the tunnel wall immediately after the shield had been pushed through, so that no silt could be seen on the tube wall behind the shield's bulkhead. These iron plates were then bolted shut to prevent leakages, as well as to maintain low air pressure in

1582-434: A tube can be sunk into a body of water, which is called an immersed tunnel. Cut-and-cover is a simple method of construction for shallow tunnels where a trench is excavated and roofed over with an overhead support system strong enough to carry the load of what is to be built above the tunnel. There are two basic forms of cut-and-cover tunnelling: Shallow tunnels are often of the cut-and-cover type (if under water, of

1695-747: A tunnel than a sufficiently strong bridge). Some water crossings are a mixture of bridges and tunnels, such as the Denmark to Sweden link and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel in Virginia . There are particular hazards with tunnels, especially from vehicle fires when combustion gases can asphyxiate users, as happened at the Gotthard Road Tunnel in Switzerland in 2001. One of the worst railway disasters ever,

1808-589: A tunnel under the Hudson River. The company was incorporated in New York on May 22 of that year and was incorporated in New Jersey four days later, on May 26; the companies initially had a $ 7 million capital stock authorization. Haskin intended for the tube to run from 15th Street in Jersey City to Morton Street in Manhattan, a distance of 5,400 feet (1,600 m). At the time, constructing a tunnel under

1921-432: A tunnel. Bridges usually require a larger footprint on each shore than tunnels. In areas with expensive real estate, such as Manhattan and urban Hong Kong , this is a strong factor in favor of a tunnel. Boston's Big Dig project replaced elevated roadways with a tunnel system to increase traffic capacity, hide traffic, reclaim land, redecorate, and reunite the city with the waterfront. The 1934 Queensway Tunnel under

2034-515: Is allowed in this tunnel tube, and motorcyclists are directed to the other tube. Each level was built with a three-lane roadway, but only two lanes per level are used – the third serves as a hard shoulder within the tunnel. The A86 Duplex is Europe's longest double-deck tunnel. Flying junction The alternative to grade separation is a level junction or flat junction, where tracks cross at grade , and conflicting routes must be protected by interlocked signals . Simple flying junctions may have

2147-527: Is at the Christopher Street station ; service continues uptown to the 33rd Street terminal, making intermediate stops at Ninth Street , 14th Street , and 23rd Street . Two stations formerly existed at 19th Street and 28th Street. The ornately-designed stations in Manhattan featured straight platforms, each 370 feet (110 m) long and able to accommodate 8-car consists. The stations underneath Sixth Avenue (14th, 19th, 23rd, and 28th streets, and

2260-502: Is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two portals common at each end, though there may be access and ventilation openings at various points along the length. A pipeline differs significantly from a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube construction techniques rather than traditional tunnel boring methods. A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic , for rail traffic, or for

2373-505: Is intended to carry both the Istanbul metro and a two-level highway, over a length of 6.5 km (4.0 miles). The French A86 Duplex Tunnel  [ fr ] in west Paris consists of two bored tunnel tubes, the eastern one of which has two levels for light motorized vehicles, over a length of 10 km (6.2 miles). Although each level offers a physical height of 2.54 m (8.3 ft), only traffic up to 2 m (6.6 ft) tall

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2486-494: Is relatively long and narrow; the length is often much greater than twice the diameter , although similar shorter excavations can be constructed, such as cross passages between tunnels. The definition of what constitutes a tunnel can vary widely from source to source. For example, in the United Kingdom, a road tunnel is defined as "a subsurface highway structure enclosed for a length of 150 metres (490 ft) or more." In

2599-401: Is sometimes necessary during the excavation of a tunnel. They are usually circular and go straight down until they reach the level at which the tunnel is going to be built. A shaft normally has concrete walls and is usually built to be permanent. Once the access shafts are complete, TBMs are lowered to the bottom and excavation can start. Shafts are the main entrance in and out of the tunnel until

2712-515: Is that the open building pit is muted after tunnel construction; no roof is placed. Some tunnels are double-deck, for example, the two major segments of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge (completed in 1936) are linked by a 160-metre (540 ft) double-deck tunnel section through Yerba Buena Island , the largest-diameter bored tunnel in the world. At construction this was a combination bidirectional rail and truck pathway on

2825-698: Is the Siloam Tunnel , built in Jerusalem by the kings of Judah around the 8th century BC. Another tunnel excavated from both ends, maybe the second known, is the Tunnel of Eupalinos , which is a tunnel aqueduct 1,036 m (3,400 ft) long running through Mount Kastro in Samos , Greece. It was built in the 6th century BC to serve as an aqueduct . In Ethiopia , the Siqurto foot tunnel , hand-hewn in

2938-533: The American Society of Civil Engineers . Additionally, the coal -fired Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Powerhouse , which generated electricity to run the Hudson tube trains, was built in 1906–1908. The powerhouse stopped generating in 1929, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 23, 2001. Tunnel A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It

3051-569: The Balvano train disaster , was caused by a train stalling in the Armi tunnel in Italy in 1944, killing 426 passengers. Designers try to reduce these risks by installing emergency ventilation systems or isolated emergency escape tunnels parallel to the main passage. Government funds are often required for the creation of tunnels. When a tunnel is being planned or constructed, economics and politics play

3164-547: The Downtown Hudson Tubes that connect Jersey City and the World Trade Center . As well, they were built when today's Midtown Manhattan was considered "uptown" and the true northernmost reaches of the island were not as densely developed. The name "Uptown Hudson Tubes" also applies to the section of the subway under Christopher Street and Sixth Avenue in Manhattan. The first PATH stop in New York

3277-560: The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) had become a viable competitor, with a proposal to connect its Lexington Avenue line to the H&M at three locations: Fulton Street , Astor Place , and Grand Central–42nd Street . The Sixth Avenue portion of the H&M line also competed with the IRT's Sixth Avenue elevated , which extended both north of 33rd Street and south of 9th Street. Passengers along

3390-610: The New York City Board of Transportation . One of the proposed routes, the Sixth Avenue Line , ran parallel to the Uptown Hudson Tubes from Ninth to 33rd streets. At first, the city intended to take over the portion of the Uptown Hudson Tubes under Sixth Avenue for IND use, then build a pair of new tunnels for the H&M directly underneath it. With the IND committed to building the Sixth Avenue line, and

3503-520: The Newport station ) to the south. The junction also allows trains to travel between Hoboken and Newport. Each end of the junction is within one of three double-deck concrete caissons . The Uptown Hudson Tubes enter caisson 1 at the eastern end of the junction, which carries trains to Hoboken or Newport on the upper level and trains from Hoboken or Newport on the lower level. Caisson 2 at the northern end carries trains to and from Hoboken, while caisson 3 at

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3616-471: The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey was not aware of this bill and had not asked for a grant for such a project. Increased taxes to finance a large project may cause opposition. Tunnels are dug in types of materials varying from soft clay to hard rock. The method of tunnel construction depends on such factors as the ground conditions, the groundwater conditions, the length and diameter of

3729-848: The Queens-Midtown Tunnel between Manhattan and the borough of Queens on Long Island ; the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel between Michigan and Ontario ; and the Elizabeth River tunnels between Norfolk and Portsmouth, Virginia ; the 1934 River Mersey road Queensway Tunnel ; the Western Scheldt Tunnel , Zeeland, Netherlands; and the North Shore Connector tunnel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . The Sydney Harbour Tunnel

3842-472: The River Mersey at Liverpool was chosen over a massively high bridge partly for defense reasons; it was feared that aircraft could destroy a bridge in times of war, not merely impairing road traffic but blocking the river to navigation. Maintenance costs of a massive bridge to allow the world's largest ships to navigate under were considered higher than for a tunnel. Similar conclusions were reached for

3955-679: The United Kingdom of digging tunnels in strong clay-based soil structures. This method of cut and cover construction required relatively little disturbance of property during the renewal of the United Kingdom's then ancient sewerage systems. It was also used during the First World War by Royal Engineer tunnelling companies placing mines beneath German lines, because it was almost silent and so not susceptible to listening methods of detection. Tunnel boring machines (TBMs) and associated back-up systems are used to highly automate

4068-610: The canton of Glarus . The borehole has a diameter of 8.03 metres (26.3 ft). The four TBMs used for excavating the 57-kilometre (35 mi) Gotthard Base Tunnel , in Switzerland , had a diameter of about 9 metres (30 ft). A larger TBM was built to bore the Green Heart Tunnel (Dutch: Tunnel Groene Hart) as part of the HSL-Zuid in the Netherlands, with a diameter of 14.87 metres (48.8 ft). This in turn

4181-489: The water table . This pressurizes the ground ahead of the TBM cutter head to balance the water pressure. The operators work in normal air pressure behind the pressurized compartment, but may occasionally have to enter that compartment to renew or repair the cutters. This requires special precautions, such as local ground treatment or halting the TBM at a position free from water. Despite these difficulties, TBMs are now preferred over

4294-689: The 16th century as a metaphor for a narrow, confined space like the inside of a cask. Some of the earliest tunnels used by humans were paleoburrows excavated by prehistoric mammals. Much of the early technology of tunneling evolved from mining and military engineering . The etymology of the terms "mining" (for mineral extraction or for siege attacks ), " military engineering ", and " civil engineering " reveals these deep historic connections. Predecessors of modern tunnels were adits that transported water for irrigation , drinking, or sewerage . The first qanats are known from before 2000 BC. The earliest tunnel known to have been excavated from both ends

4407-638: The 1960s. The main idea of this method is to use the geological stress of the surrounding rock mass to stabilize the tunnel, by allowing a measured relaxation and stress reassignment into the surrounding rock to prevent full loads becoming imposed on the supports. Based on geotechnical measurements, an optimal cross section is computed. The excavation is protected by a layer of sprayed concrete, commonly referred to as shotcrete . Other support measures can include steel arches, rock bolts, and mesh. Technological developments in sprayed concrete technology have resulted in steel and polypropylene fibers being added to

4520-716: The 1971 Kingsway Tunnel under the Mersey. In Hampton Roads, Virginia , tunnels were chosen over bridges for strategic considerations; in the event of damage, bridges might prevent US Navy vessels from leaving Naval Station Norfolk . Water-crossing tunnels built instead of bridges include the Seikan Tunnel in Japan; the Holland Tunnel and Lincoln Tunnel between New Jersey and Manhattan in New York City ;

4633-573: The 33rd Street terminal was rebuilt. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey took over the H&M and the tunnels in 1962, rebranding the H&M as part of the PATH system. The Hoboken–33rd Street and Journal Square–33rd Street services operate through the tubes on weekdays, while the Journal Square–33rd Street (via Hoboken) service operates on weekends, nights, and holidays. The Uptown Hudson Tubes travel roughly east–west beneath

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4746-529: The 42nd Street Line's platforms, but above the IRT's Steinway Tunnel that carried the Flushing Line to Queens . However, the IRT had constructed an unauthorized ventilation shaft between the 42nd Street line and the Steinway Tunnel; this would force the H&M to build its station at a very low depth, making it relatively harder for passengers to access the H&M station. As an alternative,

4859-545: The East River, and who had also worked on the unfinished tunnel. McAdoo and consulting engineer J. Vipond Davies both believed that the existing work was still salvageable. McAdoo formed the New York and Jersey Tunnel Company in 1902, raising $ 8.5 million in capital stock for the company. Unlike the North River Tunnels upstream, which would carry intercity and commuter trains when they opened in 1910,

4972-594: The Grand Central extension. By 1914, the H&M had not started construction of the Grand Central extension, and it requested to delay the start of construction for at least two more months. The Rapid Transit Commissioners had determined that the Ninth Street crosstown spur was unlikely to be built soon, so permission to build the Ninth Street tunnel was denied. By 1920, the H&M had submitted seventeen applications in which they sought to delay construction of

5085-443: The H&M line northeast to Grand Central Terminal , at Park Avenue and 42nd Street . In the coming years, many businesses moved to Sixth Avenue, along the route of the Uptown Hudson Tubes, while commuters moved to New Jersey to take advantage of the 10-minute commute to Manhattan. New office buildings were also developed around Hoboken Terminal. The 23rd Street station opened on June 15, 1908. Trains to 23rd Street initially used

5198-569: The H&M proposed extending them northward to Grand Central Terminal , as well as creating a crosstown spur line that would run under Ninth Street in Manhattan. However, neither extension was ultimately constructed. In the 1930s, parts of the tubes under Sixth Avenue were rebuilt due to the construction of the Independent Subway System (IND)'s Sixth Avenue Line . The Uptown Hudson Tubes contained seven original stations; two stations at 19th and 28th streets were later closed and

5311-508: The H&M's 33rd Street terminal located both above and below preexisting railroad tunnels, the IND preferred to acquire the tubes. However, the H&M objected, and negotiations between the city, IND, and H&M continued until 1929. The IND and H&M finally came to an agreement in 1930. The city had decided to build the IND Sixth Avenue Line's local tracks around the pre-existing H&M tubes, and add express tracks for

5424-480: The Hudson River, connecting Manhattan in the east and Jersey City in the west. On the Manhattan side, the tunnels initially run eastward under Morton Street. At Greenwich Street, the tubes curve sharply north for two blocks, then turn sharply east below Christopher Street . The curve, which follows the streets above it, was made to avoid demolishing basements during construction. The tubes do not enter Upper Manhattan ; their name reflects their location north of

5537-493: The IND tracks below. The IND line opened in December 1940; it replaced the Sixth Avenue elevated, which was closed in December 1938 and demolished soon after. The 19th Street station was closed in 1954. The only entrance to the station's westbound platform had been located inside a building, whose owner canceled the lease for the station entrance. The H&M determined that constructing a new entrance would be too expensive given

5650-429: The IND underneath the H&M tubes at a later date. However, the city still planned to eventually take over the H&M tracks, convert them to express tracks for the IND line, then build a lower level for the H&M. As part of the construction of the IND line, the H&M's 14th Street and 23rd Street stations had to be rebuilt to provide space for the IND's 14th Street and 23rd Street stations, which would be located at

5763-402: The IRT's 42nd Street Line and terminate at Park Avenue. This would have created an easy connection to Grand Central Terminal, which was under construction at the time . There would be two intermediate stops at 39th Street/Sixth Avenue and 42nd Street/Fifth Avenue. The proposed extension to Grand Central soon encountered problems. At Grand Central, the H&M platforms would be directly below

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5876-580: The Manhattan side were also completed during this time. Test runs of trains without passengers started through the tunnels in late 1907; the Hudson Companies tested its rolling stock on the Second Avenue Elevated , then delivered the trains to the Uptown Hudson Tubes for further testing. A trial run, carrying a party of officials, dignitaries, and news reporters, ran on February 15, 1908. The first "official" passenger train, which

5989-709: The Middle Ages, crosses a mountain ridge. In the Gaza Strip , the network of tunnels was used by Jewish strategists as rock-cut shelters, in first links to Judean resistance against Roman rule in the Bar Kokhba revolt during the 2nd century AD. A major tunnel project must start with a comprehensive investigation of ground conditions by collecting samples from boreholes and by other geophysical techniques. An informed choice can then be made of machinery and methods for excavation and ground support, which will reduce

6102-687: The Morton Street Tunnel was intended to carry only trolleys or rapid transit, which used smaller trains. This, in turn, allowed the Morton Street Tunnel to be smaller and less expensive. Originally, McAdoo only intended to complete the northern tube, which was further along in the construction process. Afterward, he would operate a narrow-gauge railway with two small carriages going back and forth within that single tube. However, amid worsening ferry congestion at Cortlandt Street Ferry Depot in Lower Manhattan , McAdoo ultimately devised

6215-482: The Morton Street Tunnel; it employed James Henry Greathead as a consulting engineer and S. Pearson & Son as principal contractors. S. Pearson & Son subsequently acquired the project's construction contract from Haskin's company. The unnamed British company advertised bonds in England in 1889 to raise money for construction. Following another blowout in 1890, the company turned to shield tunneling. The firm used

6328-691: The Netherlands (see Examples below). Nearly all junctions with high-speed railways are grade-separated. On the French Lignes à Grande Vitesse ( TGV ) high-speed network, the principal junction on the LGV Sud-Est , at Pasilly where the line to Dijon diverges, and on the LGV Atlantique at Courtalain where the line to Le Mans diverges, are fully grade-separated with special high-speed switches ( points in British terminology) that permit

6441-470: The New Jersey-bound platform at 14th Street and both platforms of Christopher Street were closed for three months for renovations. Due to positive train control installation on the Uptown Hudson Tubes, service through the tubes was mostly suspended on weekends from July to October 2018. The Uptown and Downtown Hudson Tubes were declared a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1978 by

6554-599: The United States, the NFPA definition of a tunnel is "An underground structure with a design length greater than 23 m (75 ft) and a diameter greater than 1,800 millimetres (5.9 ft)." The word "tunnel" comes from the Middle English tonnelle , meaning "a net", derived from Old French tonnel , a diminutive of tonne ("cask"). The modern meaning, referring to an underground passageway, evolved in

6667-492: The Uptown Hudson Tubes called for a terminal at 33rd Street under the Gimbels department store, now Manhattan Mall . During construction, the plan was changed so the 33rd Street station was directly under Sixth Avenue, providing for a future northward extension. This northward extension, which McAdoo had proposed by 1910, called for the Uptown Hudson Tubes to run under Sixth Avenue to 42nd Street, where they would curve east under

6780-454: The Uptown Hudson Tubes was completed in 1907, after 33 years of intermittent effort; they were celebrated as the first non-waterborne link between Manhattan and New Jersey. Work continued to finish off the interior of the tubes. The finishing touches included the addition of a concrete lining, which replaced the original brick lining, as well as laying tracks and electric third rails ; this took an additional year to complete. The stations on

6893-538: The Uptown Tubes on weekdays: Hoboken–33rd Street and Journal Square–33rd Street . On late nights, weekends, and holidays, they are combined into the Journal Square–33rd Street (via Hoboken) service. Plans for a fixed crossing of the Hudson River date to the 1850s. No action was taken on the proposal until 1873, when engineer Dewitt Clinton Haskin formed the Hudson Tunnel Company to construct

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7006-410: The Uptown Tubes' southern tunnel is 15 feet 3 inches (4.65 m), while the more northerly tunnel is slightly larger with a diameter of 18 feet (5.5 m), because that tube had been constructed first. The tunnels are composed of built-up concentric steel rings measuring 2 feet (0.61 m) wide. On one side of each tube is a concrete bench wall, which measures 4 feet (1.2 m) high above

7119-400: The blocky nature of rocks, the exact location of fault zones, or the stand-up times of softer ground. This may be a particular concern in large-diameter tunnels. To give more information, a pilot tunnel (or "drift tunnel") may be driven ahead of the main excavation. This smaller tunnel is less likely to collapse catastrophically should unexpected conditions be met, and it can be incorporated into

7232-484: The bondholders took possession of the tunnel. In 1901, lawyer and future statesman William Gibbs McAdoo casually mentioned the idea of a Hudson River tunnel to a fellow lawyer, John Randolph Dos Passos , who had invested in the original tunneling project. From this conversation, McAdoo learned about the unfinished Morton Street Tunnel effort. He went on to explore it with Charles M. Jacobs , an engineer who helped build New York City's first underwater tunnel in 1894 under

7345-457: The circular tubes become two rectangular tunnels, which measure 14.5 feet (4.4 m) high by 13 feet (4.0 m) wide and carry one track each. Initial plans called for the 33rd Street station to be constructed as a four-track station, with two tracks for terminating trains and two tracks for trains running along an unbuilt northern extension of the line. As built, the 33rd Street station contained three tracks. PATH operates two services through

7458-475: The city's Utilities Board proposed connecting the Uptown Hudson Tubes to the Steinway Tunnel. A franchise to extend the Uptown Hudson Tubes to Grand Central was awarded in June 1909, with the expectation that construction would start within six months and that the extension would be operational by January 1911. However, by February 1910, financing had only been secured to complete the 33rd Street terminal, and not for

7571-413: The completion of the other lines. The crosstown line was only excavated about 250 feet (76 m); the partly completed crosstown tube still exists. In January 1905, the Hudson Companies was incorporated for the purpose of completing the Uptown Hudson Tubes and constructing the Sixth Avenue line. The company, which was contracted to construct the Uptown Hudson Tubes' subway tunnel connections on each side of

7684-502: The concrete mix to improve lining strength. This creates a natural load-bearing ring, which minimizes the rock's deformation . By special monitoring the NATM method is flexible, even at surprising changes of the geomechanical rock consistency during the tunneling work. The measured rock properties lead to appropriate tools for tunnel strengthening . In pipe jacking , hydraulic jacks are used to push specially made pipes through

7797-607: The corpses of the workers. A memorial for one of the workers killed was later erected in Jersey City. The tunnel's construction was taken over by a new company called the Hudson River Tunnel Company in March 1881. This company drove a shaft on Morton Street in Manhattan and extended the tunnel from the Jersey City side. The liabilities incurred as a result of the 1880 accident halted tunneling work on November 5, 1882, due to insufficient funds. At that time, water

7910-572: The eastern tube between 19th and 23rd Streets. The western tube opened on November 10, 1910, and the extension to 33rd Street also opened at that time. H&M officials celebrated the completion of the line to 33rd Street with a luncheon at the Hotel Martinique at Herald Square. On July 19, 1909, service via the downtown tubes commenced between Hudson Terminal in Lower Manhattan and Exchange Place in Jersey City. By this time,

8023-409: The entire tunnelling process, reducing tunnelling costs. In certain predominantly urban applications, tunnel boring is viewed as a quick and cost-effective alternative to laying surface rails and roads. Expensive compulsory purchase of buildings and land, with potentially lengthy planning inquiries, is eliminated. Disadvantages of TBMs arise from their usually large size – the difficulty of transporting

8136-507: The extension to Grand Central; in all seventeen instances, the H&M claimed that it was not an appropriate time to construct the tube. On its seventeenth application, the Rapid Transit Commissioners declined the request for a delay, effectively ending the H&M's right to build an extension to Grand Central. In 1924, the city-operated Independent Subway System (IND) submitted its list of proposed subway routes to

8249-441: The final tunnel or used as a backup or emergency escape passage. Alternatively, horizontal boreholes may sometimes be drilled ahead of the advancing tunnel face. Other key geotechnical factors: For water crossings, a tunnel is generally more costly to construct than a bridge. However, both navigational and traffic considerations may limit the use of high bridges or drawbridges intersecting with shipping channels, necessitating

8362-405: The ground behind a TBM or shield. This method is commonly used to create tunnels under existing structures, such as roads or railways. Tunnels constructed by pipe jacking are normally small diameter bores with a maximum size of around 3.2 metres (10 ft). Box jacking is similar to pipe jacking, but instead of jacking tubes, a box-shaped tunnel is used. Jacked boxes can be a much larger span than

8475-640: The immersed-tube type), while deep tunnels are excavated, often using a tunnelling shield . For intermediate levels, both methods are possible. Large cut-and-cover boxes are often used for underground metro stations, such as Canary Wharf tube station in London. This construction form generally has two levels, which allows economical arrangements for ticket hall, station platforms, passenger access and emergency egress, ventilation and smoke control, staff rooms, and equipment rooms. The interior of Canary Wharf station has been likened to an underground cathedral, owing to

8588-435: The inevitable smoke and steam. A major disadvantage of cut-and-cover is the widespread disruption generated at the surface level during construction. This, and the availability of electric traction, brought about London Underground's switch to bored tunnels at a deeper level towards the end of the 19th century. Prior to the replacement of manual excavation by the use of boring machines, Victorian tunnel excavators developed

8701-468: The large TBM to the site of tunnel construction, or (alternatively) the high cost of assembling the TBM on-site, often within the confines of the tunnel being constructed. There are a variety of TBM designs that can operate in a variety of conditions, from hard rock to soft water-bearing ground. Some TBMs, the bentonite slurry and earth-pressure balance types, have pressurized compartments at the front end, allowing them to be used in difficult conditions below

8814-640: The line could be extended further north to Central Park in the future. The New York and Jersey Railroad had previously submitted a bid for a Sixth Avenue subway line, but it was refused because Sixth Avenue was a major north–south road. The Rapid Transit Board changed its decision after Sixth Avenue property owners expressed opposition to the rejection. McAdoo's company was also given perpetual rights to build and operate an east–west crosstown line under Christopher Street and Ninth Street eastward to either Second Avenue or Astor Place , with no intermediate stops. The Ninth Street tunnel would be constructed only after

8927-629: The lower deck with automobiles above, now converted to one-way road vehicle traffic on each deck. In Turkey, the Eurasia Tunnel under the Bosphorus , opened in 2016, has at its core a 5.4 km (3.4 miles) two-deck road tunnel with two lanes on each deck. Additionally, in 2015 the Turkish government announced that it will build three -level tunnel, also under the Bosporus. The tunnel

9040-504: The mile-wide river was considered less expensive than trying to build a bridge over it. Trenor W. Park was hired as the president of the new company. Haskin subsequently sought $ 10 million in funding to pay for the tunnel. An initial attempt to construct the Hudson River tunnel began in November 1874 from the Jersey City side. Had this original tunnel effort been completed, it would have been 12,000 feet (3,700 m) long and consisted of

9153-428: The name reflects their location north of the Downtown Hudson Tubes that connect Jersey City and the World Trade Center . Dewitt Clinton Haskin first attempted to construct the Uptown Hudson Tubes in 1873. Work was delayed by five years by a lawsuit, and was further disrupted by an 1880 accident that killed twenty workers. The project was canceled in 1883 due to a lack of money. A British company attempted to complete

9266-620: The normal line speed of 300 km/h (186 mph) on the main line, and a diverging speed of 220 km/h (137 mph). The LGV network has four grade-separated high-speed triangles: Fretin (near Lille), Coubert (southeast Paris), Claye-Souilly (northeast Paris) and Angles (Avignon). A fifth, Vémars (northeast Paris), is grade-separated except for a single-track link on the least-used side, linking Paris Gare du Nord and Paris CDG airport. Finland There are between 25 and about 40 flying junctions on Dutch railways, depending on how more complex examples are counted. Flying junctions where

9379-483: The older method of tunnelling in compressed air, with an airlock/decompression chamber some way back from the TBM, which required operators to work in high pressure and go through decompression procedures at the end of their shifts, much like deep-sea divers . In February 2010, Aker Wirth delivered a TBM to Switzerland, for the expansion of the Linth–Limmern Power Stations located south of Linthal in

9492-540: The operation of empty and loaded trains at the same time. The temporary way is replaced by the permanent way at completion, thus explaining the term " Perway ". The vehicles or traffic using a tunnel can outgrow it, requiring replacement or enlargement: An open building pit consists of a horizontal and a vertical boundary that keeps groundwater and soil out of the pit. There are several potential alternatives and combinations for (horizontal and vertical) building pit boundaries. The most important difference with cut-and-cover

9605-411: The original 33rd Street Terminal) contain round columns with scrolls and the station name near the ceilings. The exposed steel rings of the tunnel's structure can be seen at Christopher and Ninth streets. On the Jersey City side, the tunnels leave the riverbank approximately parallel to 15th Street and enter a flying junction where trains can turn to Hoboken Terminal to the north or Erie Terminal (now

9718-406: The portion of the Uptown Hudson Tubes that ran along Sixth Avenue; their ceilings located just 38 feet (12 m) beneath the bottom of the tubes. Service on the Uptown Hudson Tubes was suspended for five days in 1962 when it was discovered that builders constructing the express tunnels had drilled to an "unsafe" margin of 18 feet (5.5 m) underneath. The express tracks opened in 1967. In 1986,

9831-522: The project is completed. If a tunnel is going to be long, multiple shafts at various locations may be bored so that entrance to the tunnel is closer to the unexcavated area. Once construction is complete, construction access shafts are often used as ventilation shafts , and may also be used as emergency exits. The New Austrian Tunnelling method (NATM)—also referred to as the Sequential Excavation Method (SEM) —was developed in

9944-490: The proper machinery must be selected. Large infrastructure projects require millions or even billions of dollars, involving long-term financing, usually through issuance of bonds . The costs and benefits for an infrastructure such as a tunnel must be identified. Political disputes can occur, as in 2005 when the US House of Representatives approved a $ 100 million federal grant to build a tunnel under New York Harbor. However,

10057-592: The proximity of the 14th Street station. In 1962, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey took over the H&M's operations, and the H&M system was rebranded as the PATH . In 1961, as part of the Chrystie Street Connection and DeKalb Avenue Junction projects, the city began building a pair of express tracks for the IND Sixth Avenue Line. Although the tracks were located 80 feet (24 m) below ground level, they were directly underneath

10170-482: The risk of encountering unforeseen ground conditions. In planning the route, the horizontal and vertical alignments can be selected to make use of the best ground and water conditions. It is common practice to locate a tunnel deeper than otherwise would be required, in order to excavate through solid rock or other material that is easier to support during construction. Conventional desk and preliminary site studies may yield insufficient information to assess such factors as

10283-555: The river, had a capital of $ 21 million to complete the project. The Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Company (H&M) was incorporated in December 1906 to operate a passenger railroad system between New York and New Jersey via the Uptown and Downtown Hudson Tubes. The Downtown Hudson Tubes, located about 1.25 miles (2.01 km) south of the first pair, had started construction by that point, and would ultimately open in July 1909. Digging for

10396-415: The river. The northern tube extended 4,000 feet (1,200 m) from the New Jersey shore and 150 feet (46 m) from the New York shore, with a gap of 1,500 feet (460 m) between the two ends of the tube. The southern tube had only been excavated 1,000 feet (300 m) from the New Jersey shore and 300 feet (91 m) from the New York shore. The construction company was foreclosed upon during 1898, and

10509-546: The same time, it pulls air into the rail tunnel from the closest ventilation shaft behind it. This enables the piston effect , which results in better ventilation . On the Jersey City side, there is a construction shaft at 15th Street, measuring 30 by 65 feet (9.1 by 19.8 m) wide. When the tunnels were completed, the construction shaft was converted into a ventilation shaft. Additional ventilation shafts are located in Manhattan at Morton Street; Christopher and Greenwich streets; and Ninth Street and Sixth Avenue. The diameter of

10622-542: The sheer size of the excavation. This contrasts with many traditional stations on London Underground , where bored tunnels were used for stations and passenger access. Nevertheless, the original parts of the London Underground network, the Metropolitan and District Railways, were constructed using cut-and-cover. These lines pre-dated electric traction and the proximity to the surface was useful to ventilate

10735-402: The shield, which faced the portion of the tunnel that had already been dug. The bulkhead contained a pressurized air lock in order to avoid sudden blowouts, such as had occurred during the original construction. The air pressure was maintained at 38 pounds per square inch (260 kPa). The excavated mud was then carted away to the surface using battery -operated electric locomotives running on

10848-431: The southern end carries trains to and from Newport. The Uptown Hudson Tubes measure 5,500 feet (1,700 m), or 5,650 feet (1,720 m) between shafts. The tubes descend as far as 97 feet (30 m) below mean river level. In both the uptown and downtown tubes, each track is located in its own tunnel. When a train passes through the tunnel, it pushes out the air in front of it towards the closest ventilation shaft. At

10961-460: The track bed. The bench walls contain ducts with wiring. At Sixth Avenue and Christopher Street, the tunnels enter an arched cavern measuring 68 feet (21 m) wide, then curve north under Sixth Avenue. The cavern was built to accommodate a junction with a never-built spur extending eastward under Ninth Street. Shield tunneling was used only between the Uptown Hudson Tubes' western end in Jersey City and 12th Street in Manhattan. North of 12th Street,

11074-401: The tube. The silt layer was then removed after the tubes were finished, allowing each tube to maintain its own air pressure. S. Pearson & Son were unable to finish the tubes because they had also run out of funds by 1891. Work stopped completely in 1892 after the company had completed another 2,000 feet (610 m) of digging. By this point, the pair of tubes had been dug from both sides of

11187-402: The tubular cast iron and tunneling shield method was mostly used on the southern tube. For the southern tube, the tunneling shield progressed from the New Jersey side. Some difficulties arose during the completion of the northern tube. The company had to use dynamite to tunnel through a hard reef on the Manhattan side, which was only 1 to 16 feet (0.30 to 4.88 m) above the intended grade of

11300-400: The tunnel drive, the depth of the tunnel, the logistics of supporting the tunnel excavation, the final use and the shape of the tunnel and appropriate risk management. There are three basic types of tunnel construction in common use. Cut-and-cover tunnels are constructed in a shallow trench and then covered over. Bored tunnels are constructed in situ, without removing the ground above. Finally,

11413-402: The tunnel. In addition, an explosion killed one worker. The two parts of the northern tube were connected on March 11, 1904, accompanied by a large celebration that involved a group of 20 men walking through the completed tube from end to end. By the end of 1904, the New York and Jersey Railroad Company had received permission from the New York City Board of Rapid Transit Commissioners to build

11526-407: The tunnel. McAdoo later noted that the Uptown Hudson Tubes effort was the first project where machines, rather than workers, carted out the excess silt. Because of the previous work on the Morton Street Tunnel, the tunnel project was already half complete a year after McAdoo's company started digging. By 1903, the gap was only a few feet wide between the two sections of the northern tube. As a result,

11639-472: The tunnels in 1888, but also ran out of money by 1892, by which point the tunnels were nearly half-finished. In 1901, a company formed by William Gibbs McAdoo resumed work on the tubes, and by 1907, the tunnels were fully bored. The Uptown Hudson Tubes opened to passenger service in 1908 as part of the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad (H&M) and were completed by 1910. After the Uptown Hudson Tubes' opening,

11752-428: The two most common being bored tunnels or immersed tubes , examples are Bjørvika Tunnel and Marmaray . Submerged floating tunnels are a novel approach under consideration; however, no such tunnels have been constructed to date. During construction of a tunnel it is often convenient to install a temporary railway, particularly to remove excavated spoil , often narrow gauge so that it can be double track to allow

11865-492: The uptown branch initially paid a flat fare of 5 cents. In 1911, H&M officials voted to raise fares to 7 cents for passengers traveling between the uptown branch and New Jersey. Passengers traveling between any two stations on the uptown branch, as well as passengers heading to Hudson Terminal, continued to pay 5 cents. In 1920, the fare between New Jersey and the uptown branch was raised to 10 cents, while passengers heading to Hudson Terminal paid 6 cents. The original plans for

11978-471: Was allowed to fill the unfinished tunnel. On March 20, 1883, the air compressors were turned back on and the tunnel was drained with the resumption of work. This continued for the next four months until July 20, 1883, when it was stopped once again due to a lack of funds. By that time, about 1,500 feet (460 m) of the northern tube and about 600 feet (180 m) of the southern tube had been constructed. In 1888, an unnamed British company attempted to finish

12091-433: Was also open only to officials and dignitaries, left 19th Street on February 25, 1908, at 3:40 p.m., and arrived at Hoboken Terminal ten minutes later. The tubes opened to the general public at midnight the next day, at which point the tubes had taken more than three decades to construct. At the time, three more stations at 23rd Street , 28th Street, and 33rd Street were under construction, and there were plans to extend

12204-575: Was constructed to provide a second harbour crossing and to alleviate traffic congestion on the Sydney Harbour Bridge , without spoiling the iconic view. Other reasons for choosing a tunnel instead of a bridge include avoiding difficulties with tides, weather, and shipping during construction (as in the 51.5-kilometre or 32.0-mile Channel Tunnel ), aesthetic reasons (preserving the above-ground view, landscape, and scenery), and also for weight capacity reasons (it may be more feasible to build

12317-402: Was interested in the H&M's plans as well. The new effort to complete the Uptown Hudson Tubes, led by chief engineer Charles M. Jacobs, employed a different method of tunneling using tubular cast iron plating and a tunneling shield at the excavation site. The large mechanically- jacked shield was pushed through the silt at the bottom of the river, and the silt went through the bulkhead of

12430-412: Was moved south to 32nd Street and reopened on September 24, 1939. The city paid $ 800,000 to build the new 33rd Street station and reimbursed H&M another $ 300,000 for the loss of revenue. The 28th Street station was subsequently closed because the southern entrances to the 33rd Street terminal were located only two blocks away, rendering the 28th Street stop unnecessary. It was demolished to make room for

12543-497: Was stopped by a court injunction submitted by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad , who owned the property at the tunnel's New Jersey portal. The construction shaft had been built to a depth of 20 feet (6.1 m) when work was paused. As a result of the lawsuit, work on the tunnel was delayed until September 1879, when the judge ruled in favor of the builders and the injunction was dissolved. The plans were also changed to

12656-732: Was superseded by the Madrid M30 ringroad , Spain, and the Chong Ming tunnels in Shanghai , China. All of these machines were built at least partly by Herrenknecht . As of August 2013 , the world's largest TBM was " Big Bertha ", a 17.5-metre (57.5 ft) diameter machine built by Hitachi Zosen Corporation , which dug the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement tunnel in Seattle, Washington (US). A temporary access shaft

12769-475: Was to excavate the tunnel, then fill it with compressed air to expel the water and to hold the iron plate lining in place. However, the amount of pressure needed to hold back the water at the bottom of the tube was much greater than the pressure needed to hold back the water at the top. On July 21, 1880, an overpressure blowout at the tube's top caused an accident that resulted in an air lock jam, trapping several workers and killing 20. It took six months to retrieve

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