The European Tribune is a forum for thoughtful dialogue of European and international issues. You are invited to post comments and your own articles.
Please REGISTER to post.
Most charming is the financial setup [...] The 2009 tunnel law passed by the City Council specifically says Seattle taxpayers will only pay the $937 million that they have already offered up. But [new] state law says Seattle taxpayers are on the hook for overruns [...] the project gets underway in 2011, scheduled to be done in late 2015. In July 2013, they bring in Bertha, the largest tunnel-boring machine in the world, built specifically for the project by the Hitachi Zosen Corporation. [...] a thousand feet in -- one-tenth of the way through its journey -- it grinds to a halt. No one knows why. For months. It eventually emerges that the machine itself is broken and no one is quite sure how to fix it, or how long it will take. What broke it? Turns out Bertha ran into a large steel pipe that was left there by a WSDOT [contractor] in 2002 [...] Funny story: Bertha has no reverse gear. There's no way to back it out [...] as water is pumped out, the surrounding land has started settling, unevenly, cracking streets and threatening nearby buildings and the viaduct itself.
In July 2013, they bring in Bertha, the largest tunnel-boring machine in the world, built specifically for the project by the Hitachi Zosen Corporation.
[...] a thousand feet in -- one-tenth of the way through its journey -- it grinds to a halt.
No one knows why. For months. It eventually emerges that the machine itself is broken and no one is quite sure how to fix it, or how long it will take. What broke it? Turns out Bertha ran into a large steel pipe that was left there by a WSDOT [contractor] in 2002 [...]
Funny story: Bertha has no reverse gear. There's no way to back it out [...] as water is pumped out, the surrounding land has started settling, unevenly, cracking streets and threatening nearby buildings and the viaduct itself.
by Frank Schnittger - Jun 17 24 comments
by John Redmond - Jun 17 16 comments
by Frank Schnittger - Jun 13 51 comments
by gmoke - Jun 15 5 comments
by DoDo - Jun 12 23 comments
by DoDo - Jun 5 68 comments
by generic - Jun 8 1 comment
by fjallstrom - Jun 8 1 comment
by John Redmond - Jun 1716 comments
by Frank Schnittger - Jun 1724 comments
by gmoke - Jun 155 comments
by Frank Schnittger - Jun 1351 comments
by DoDo - Jun 1223 comments
by Democrats Ramshield - Jun 104 comments
by generic - Jun 81 comment
by fjallstrom - Jun 81 comment
by DoDo - Jun 647 comments
by ARGeezer - Jun 617 comments
by DoDo - Jun 568 comments
by ARGeezer - Jun 270 comments
by das monde - Jun 222 comments
by John Redmond - May 3037 comments
by DoDo - May 2911 comments
by Frank Schnittger - May 2620 comments
by ARGeezer - May 2522 comments
by gmoke - May 23
by gmoke - May 1518 comments