8 new U.S. tunnels under way: fascinating and challenging

Whether you live in the U.S. or not you will find the following tunnels that are currently being built in U.S., fascinating. Find out which are some of the largest tunnels across the country. First of all, the 2-mile long tunnel in Seattle, part of the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Program. Although Bertha, the Tunnel Boring Machine used for this project, has currently stopped digging due to an obstruction in her way, the construction is still scheduled to be completed by 2015.

Then, there are the 1.7 miles of twin tunnels for the Central Subway Project, the first new subway route for San Francisco's municipal railway in 50 years. Two Tunnel Boring Machines, Mom Chung and Big Alma are currently working and the new line is planned to open in 2019. The 60 miles long City Water Tunnel No. 3 in New York City, one of the largest tunnels in the world, has been scheduled to complete the Brooklyn-Queens part of the tunnel by 2018. Also, the first phase of the Second Avenue Subway project, the largest expansion of the New York City subway, is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2016. Moreover, a 3-mile long tunnel in Las Vegas, for the water project of the construction of ''Intake No. 3'' should be finished by this May. The 3-mile long tunnel along the shoreline of Lake Erie in Cleveland, is part of the Project Clean Lake along with six more tunnels and is planned to be completed by 2035. The construction of twin tunnels 4,200 ft in length is part of the Port of Miami Tunnel project in Miami and is scheduled to open to traffic in 2014. Last but not least, the 13-mile-long Anacostia River Tunnel is currently under construction in Washington DC, part of The Clean Rivers Project, which is scheduled to be completed by 2025.

Read the related article with more information about the tunnels and photos here.

Source: Gizmodo