Second TBM arrives at Vancouver’s Oak-VGH Station

TBM Elsie, operated by Broadway Subway Project Corporation, an Acciona Ghella JV, broke through the station’s east wall on Saturday. The first TBM, Phyllis, arrived on October 12.

The two Herrenknecht TBMs have each bored 2km of parallel tunnels and together have installed more than 2,600 concrete tunnel-liner rings since departing from Great Northern Way-Emily Carr Station. Phyllis is preparing to launch towards South Granville shortly, while Elsie will follow once scheduled maintenance is complete.

The Oak-VGH Station is the fourth of six underground stations along the future Broadway subway corridor.

Construction of the concrete walls, columns and floors is under way at all six stations. The first section of concrete floor for the concourse level has been installed at the future Mount Pleasant Station. At the 700m-long elevated guideway section that connects the Broadway Subway Project to the existing Millennium Line, crews continue to build the concrete deck in preparation for track work.

The Broadway Subway Project is a 5.7km extension of the Millennium Line from VCC-Clark Station to West Broadway and Arbutus Street, providing a SkyTrain service along the Broadway corridor. The corridor is home to British Columbia’s second-largest jobs centre, healthcare services, an emerging innovation and research hub, and growing residential neighbourhoods.