WSP USA wins major accolade for New York tunnel rehab
21 June 2021For its rehabilitation work on New York City’s Canarsie Tunnel, WSP USA – formerly Parsons Brinckerhoff – has won the Grand Award for Engineering Excellence from The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC).
Working in a joint venture with PTG, WSP USA was prime consultant for the assessment and design of the tunnel’s rehabilitation, as well as for core capacity improvements following damage sustained during Superstorm Sandy.
Over an 11-day period in the autumn of 2012, the Canarsie Tunnel became submerged by an estimated seven million gallons of salty floodwater from the superstorm: virtually everything in the tunnel was degraded or ruined, including tracks, switches, signals, controls, and power and communications systems. The storm also severely damaged the mid-river pump room and circuit-breaker house.
The catastrophic damage initiated a project to rehabilitate the tunnel and upgrade accessibility at two stations, plus the construction of a new underground substation.
Charged with keeping the subway line running, WSP worked closely with project owner Metropolitan Transportation Authority/New York City Transit. It also worked with the contractor, construction management team and project stakeholders in an operation that limited closures to a single track on weeknights and weekends throughout the rehabilitation period.
The Canarsie Tunnel connects Manhattan and Brooklyn under the East River and is used by an average of 400,000 riders daily. It returned to full service on 26 April 2020, three months ahead of schedule and without a full shutdown – even during the coronavirus pandemic.
“By starting the tunnel rehabilitation on schedule in April 2019, the project team avoided schedule delays from the start,” said WSP project manager Jeremy Hung. “The innovative design techniques and construction approaches used provide more options for future transit tunnel projects to help minimise disruptions and inconvenience for the public.”
At the ACEC Engineering Excellence Awards on 17 June 2021, WSP USA also earned four ‘Honor Awards’ for its work on:
US Tennis Association, Louis Armstrong Stadium, New York; Interstate 84 Reconstruction, Waterbury, Connecticut; World Trade Centre Downtown Restoration, New York; and New York Harbour Water Siphon Replacement Project, Brooklyn/Staten Island.
