Turkey tunnel design contract awarded

25 July 2012


A US-based firm has been selected as independent design verifier on the Istanbul Strait Crossing tunnel project in Turkey, which will connect the European and Asian sides of the city by a road tunnel. The project will be delivered by public-private partnership procurement, HNTB stated earlier this month.

HNTB's scope of work will include performing design review and Category Three independent check of the design to verify that it is done correctly and in accordance with the project design criteria, owner's requirements, and international codes and standards. The team will review and verify the project geotechnical parameters and perform analyses for the bored tunnel, NATM tunnels, cross passages, transition boxes and cut-and-cover structures.

"Key to selection was HNTB's grasp of the technical issues of the project, the depth of our knowledge and understanding of the client's main concerns, and our resolve to deliver the project on time," said Sanja Zlatanic, chief tunnel engineer. "Our approach was focused on delivering services to meet the client schedule and performing independent analyses to identify potential for cost savings."

The tunnel is approximately 5.4km in length and includes 3.8km of 44-feet-diameter (13.4m), single-bore, double-deck TBM tunnel under the Bosphorus Strait; twin bored complex geometry tunnels using New Austrian Tunneling Method; cross passages; transition structures, cut-and-cover and U-shape approaches; portal structures, toll plazas, ventilation facilities, tunnel control and other support facilities and multiple complex structures, interchanges and facilities on both sides of the strait. Anticipated completion date for the tunnel is 2016.