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Another key milestone for London’s super sewer

Tideway, the company building London’s new super sewer, has recently completed a key milestone with the excavation of its first Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) launch shaft.

Works to begin construction of the walls of the shaft at Tideway’s Kirtling Street site began in June last year, with excavation starting in late November.

At 60 metres deep, the crews dug through several layers, excavating 45,000m3 of spoil – enough to fill 18 Olympic-sized swimming pools. In keeping with Tideway’s commitment to use the Thames to transport over 90 per cent of materials to and from Tideway sites, the spoil was removed by barge along the river.

Chris Darton, Tideway’s Central Delivery Manager, said: “Completing the shaft marks a major milestone in the delivery of the super sewer which will clean up the River Thames. The team worked tirelessly to complete the excavation and we are now looking forward to welcoming our giant Tunnel Boring Machines to site ahead of tunnelling starting later this year.”

Preparations are already underway for the next phase of the project, which involves creating the lining of the launch tunnels, laying the groundwork for the TBMs to enter later this year.

Construction of the Thames Tideway Tunnel, a major infrastructure project which will tackle sewage pollution in the River Thames, has been divided into three sections – East, West and Central – with each section being built by a different joint-venture. The central section is being constructed by a joint venture of Ferrovial Agroman UK and Laing O’Rourke Construction.

19/01/18