Sunday, July 31, 2011

Take Me Back to 1973!


And now a trip back in time, to 1973 --

It may seem hard to imagine, but this isn't the first time that the MTA has attempted to build the Second Avenue subway. (Yes, really!)

Ground was first broken for the Second Avenue subway line back in October of 1972 at 103th Street by Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller and Mayor John V. Lindsay. Two years later, in 1974, 27 blocks were under various stages of construction: Chatham Square to Canal Street, 2nd Street to 9th Street, 99th to 105th streets, and 110th to 120th streets.

This posting documents a section of the line that was built between 110th and 120th streets in East Harlem. This portion of the line is known by the MTA as "Route 132A Section 13".

The contract for this section of the Second Avenue subway was awarded by the the City of New York and the New York City Transit Authority to Cayuga Construction and Thomas Crimmins Contracting, a joint venture, in early 1973.

The contract award amount, in 1973 dollars, was $34,450,000. (Which is about $175 million in 2011 dollars, according to the Department of Labor's CPI Inflation Calculator.)

Cayuga Construction Corporation's background was mainly in heavy public construction, including extensive New York subway work. Thomas Crimmins Contracting, which was founded in 1847, was one of the top deep foundation construction companies in New York at the time.

The Transit Authority contract called for Cayuga-Crimmins to construct the structural shell for a two track subway tunnel between 110th Street and 120th Street, using the cut-and-cover tunneling method.

Work on the contract started in April 1973 with initial efforts focused on three major tasks: (1) the relocation of underground utilities, (2) the installation of an external dewatering system to lower the water table along Second Avenue and (3) efforts to underpin the foundation of many of the adjacent buildings.



1974

In this image, the contractor is using a crane to lift a steel beam into position on the outer edge of the excavation site. This steel soldier pile is being used as part of a soil retention wall along the outer edge of the site.



1974

Another view of a soldier pile beam being positioned by a pair of workers.



1974

In this image, the soldier pile is being driven down into the soil using a pile driver. (Thankfully, pile drivers are not being used extensively by the contractors who are working on the project today. These machines are very noisy pieces of equipment!)



1974

Workers in this image are excavating trenches for the deck beams that will run across Second Avenue.



1974

Workers here are positioning 36" deep steel deck beams across the avenue. This operation was done at night so that Second Avenue could be closed to traffic.



1974

Deck beams here are being moved in to place.



1974



1974
Second Avenue - looking north

This is an aerial view of the temporary timber decking (the brown road surface) across Second Avenue. The 12-inch thick timber decking enabled the traffic to pass over the excavation site.



1974

A view under the timber decking.

The contractors were always "fighting water" on this project due to the high ground water level and significant concentrations of varved silt (which is called "bull's liver" by many New York City contractors) in the work zone.

Varved silt was deposited in the New York City area by ancient glacial lakes that once existed in the region. It is a particularly difficult substance to dewater.



1974

Another view under the deck. The small structure in this image would appear to be a water pumping station.



1974

In this image, and the one below, you can clearly see the timber lagging that is used to hold back the soil (behind the soldier pile wall) as the excavation progressed.



1974

In this image, you can see part of the dewatering eductor system that was used to remove ground water from the other side of the wall.



1974

The worker here is drilling holes in preparation for blasting out the rock.



1974

Excavation of rock and other material from the floor of the work site under Second Avenue.



1974



1974

A view of a soldier pile tip which required underpinning and bolting.



1974

Soil removal from inside the excavation.



1975

Inside the excavation. Note the two levels of support struts and the rising rock line on the left.



1975

This image shows the installation of the structural steel for the tunnels, and the supports for the roadway above.



1976

A view of the nearly complete subway structure with temporary lighting. (Note that the contract did not include the installation of track or signals.)


In 1975 the Transit Authority began a process to shutdown the entire Second Avenue subway project by not awarding any new construction contracts for the line. This was done after political leaders decided that no further funding would be made available for the project.

The Second Avenue subway tunnel in East Harlem that was built by Cayuga-Crimmins, which was finally completed in 1978, will be used when when Phase II is built . . . someday.

::

Second Avenue was a difficult construction job and a financial disaster for both Cayuga Construction and Thomas Crimmins Contracting.

In 1979, Cayuga-Crimmins ended up in a court case that they brought against New York City and the Transit Authority. Cayuga-Crimmins sought to recover damages for additional expenses allegedly incurred as a result of unanticipated subsurface conditions (i.e. underground water, soil subsidence and unanticipated rock formations) and disputed work claims.

The case dragged on for a decade until it was finally settled right before it was to go to trial. By that time, Cayuga Construction had closed down its operations (in 1984) and Thomas Crimmins Contracting had been acquired by Yonkers Contracting.


A final word about the impact that the project had on the local community along Second Avenue in East Harlem.

There was serious community impact during the course of the construction work. The section from 110th to 120th streets was entirely open cut with steel and timber decking.

Decking beams were installed at night with several blocks closed to traffic. Parking was restricted during daylight work hours which caused problems for residents and store owners.

Construction operations caused excessive noise in spite of various attempts to reduce it. As example, a dewatering system pump station which operated around the clock was built on a Jefferson Houses lawn and, in spite of large silencers, could be heard in the top floor apartments.

Over 50 buildings adjacent to the excavation had to be underpinned. All buildings were monitored for movement. In one instance a building showed some tilt and was ordered vacated by the city - a step that the contractor thought was unnecessarily because the movement had stopped.

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Update - 8/8/11

The following comment, paraphrased below, was posted soon after the posting went live last week. I've now posted it here, along with a reply from the project engineer, for others to read.
"It's amazing how many of the construction techniques used are similar to those being used today.
One of the biggest differences I see between construction methods now and then is how they shored the excavation. In the 1970's photos, it appears that they used timber planks to shore the sides of the excavation between the soldier piles to keep the bull's liver from liquefying and "running" through the boards.
All of the new support of excavation walls (slurry and secant, in the launch box and at the 96th Street Station sites) are made of concrete so that they are impervious.
I am told that Cayuga-Crimmins' neighboring contractor, who built the 99th - 105th street tunnel section back in the 1970’s, used steel plates instead of timber to they would have impervious walls.

I wonder if Cayuga-Crimmins had issues with the bull’s liver running into the excavation. Did they need to grout behind the walls to address this issue?"

I asked the project engineer who worked on this job in the 1970s to respond to this comment and here's what he wrote:
"The 'standard' (i.e. customary) procedure in New York City soldier pile and timber lagging shoring applications was to put straw into the spaces between the boards. Not to keep water out but to prevent loss of soil which would lead to ground subsidence outside the excavation.
Water was to be controlled by drawing down the water table with the eductor and sand drain system. While our eductors worked successfully, a small amount of water flowed past the eductors at the top of the varved silt layer and leaked into the excavation. Also some water was kept in the very fine silt layers by capillary action.

Depending on location, the bottom of our excavation was on rock or the varved material which turned into mush with the slightest amounts of water. This made it impossible to put excavating equipment into the hole.
As a result, our soil excavation was done partially from street level with clamshell buckets and partially with equipment supported on the lower bracing (struts). In addition we installed pumps and eductors within the excavation and applied shotcrete to the face of the lagging in order to stop the infiltration.
This caused a reaction on the part of the Transit Authority (TA) because the lagging was not designed to resist a hydraulic head. This was true, but there was no head buildup by the minute amounts of capillary water. Still the TA ordered us to suspend operations and increase the number of struts.
Steel sheeting was required by the project specifications on the job south of us (i.e. the tunnel between 99th and 105th streets.) It was not required on our contract.
We estimated the job on the basis of piles and lagging partly because our review of the prebid information led us to believe that it could be done that way and partly in reliance on the TA's decision not to specify steel sheeting after having done so on the (almost) adjacent contract.
After we ran into difficulties on the project and filed our claims, the TA said that we should have bid on the basis of steel sheeting. We then checked with some of the other bidders. They had also bid on the premise of piles and lagging."

::


A Footnote:
This posting could not have been possible without the help of a project engineer who worked on this contract. He wishes to remain anonymous. He provided me with scanned copies of some of his photographs (35mm slides) that he took during the course of the construction. He also provided me with basic information about each photograph and answered my many questions.


Further Reading:

Second Avenue Subway Construction in the 1970s
The Launch Box - 9/21/2009
This posting includes a set of black and white "progress photographs" of the project. These photographs were taken for the Transit Authority by a professional photographer.

"Second Avenue Subway: Bumpy Road Ahead"
By Richard Cohen
New York
- 2/8/1971

Crimmins Contr. vs. City of NY
Thomas Crimmins Contracting Co., Inc., and Cayuga Construction Co., a Joint Venture, Respondent, v. City of New York et al., Appellants and Third-Party Plaintiffs, et al., Third-Party Defendant.
74 N.Y.2d 166 (1989)
Court of Appeals of the State of New York.
7/13/1989


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Update: 10/1/11

Recently I came across this link, "Second Avenue Subway, Harlem Edition", by a group called The LTV Squad, that includes a set of recent images that are apparently the same tunnel in Harlem. I've posted the link here for viewers who may be interested in seeing what these tunnels look like today.

My posting of this link here does not in any way indicate that I endorse the photographers' activities, since it would seem clear that all of the images were taken while trespassing on MTA property.


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Here's a listing of the recent additions
to the right-hand column of The Launch Box

Sandhogs resurface and the 96st Subway entrance begins
By Ben Thompson
Thompson's Travels
7/25/11

"Trying to Plug Big Budget Gap,
MTA Asks City to Pay for 2nd Avenue Subway"

By Jim O'Grady
WNYC News - 7/30/11

Second Avenue Subway Task Force Meeting Request for August 10th
Letter from MTA Capital Construction to Community Board 8
7/29/11
This letter prompted the cancellation of the CB8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force meeting that was scheduled for August 10th. Most of the letter deals with air quality issues in and around the 72nd Street station cavern work location.

::

Deep Below Park Avenue, a 200-Ton Drill at Rest
By Michael M. Grynbaum
The New York Times - 7/24/11
This article isn't about the Second Avenue subway. I've included a link to it here because I found it to be particularly interesting.

Michael Grynbaum's story details the recent massive entombment, 14 stories under Park Avenue, of one of the TBM cutterheads used on the MTA's East Side Access project.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Progress North to South


On Saturday mid-day, I walked from 100th Street down to 63rd Street to see what new and interesting things were happening on the project. It's been about four weeks since my last posting so I expected, and did, find much to report.

::

Update 7/18/11:
Additional information has been added to the posting, as noted below. All of this new information was provided to me in a comment that was left on the blog earlier today.

Update 8/9/11:
Additional information about the permits that were issued for the crane disassemble work at 97th Street has been added.



7/16/11
near 99th Street - looking N

The gantry crane shown here, which was made by Mi-Jack Products of Hazel Crest, Illinois, is being used to build and move slurry wall cages (shown in the foreground) for the current 96th Street Station contract.



7/16/11
btw. 99th & 100th streets - looking E

Another view of the gantry crane.



7/16/11

A closer look at a section of slurry wall cage. The cages are built using reinforced steel bar, which is commonly known as rebar.



7/16/11
97th Street - looking N

Note the wood timbers that have been laid on the surface of Second Avenue at this location. This is done to better distribute the load of the very heavy Liebherr crawler crane (shown in the image) across the surface of the roadway.



7/16/11
97th Street, SW corner - looking S

This is a view of the future location of Ancillary Building No. 2 for the 96th Street Station. This was the location of the former Century Lumber Yard.



7/16/11
96th Street - looking N

This is a view of the temporary slurry plant that has been set up just east of Second Avenue, between 96th & 97th streets. The plant will eventually be removed by the contractor when it is no longer needed.

Note in particular the new "urban canvas" that the MTA has placed on the fencing at this location (left-click image to zoom in). The design was prepared by the artist Corinne Ulmann.



7/16/11
96th Street - looking S

I'm not sure exactly what these large steel objects are.

Update 7/18/11:
I've been told that these object are steel end stops for the slurry wall panels. The end stops go on the sides of each slurry wall panel to stop the flow of concrete around the side of the panel and to provide a structural “key” (i.e. a notch).

The trapezoidal side goes against the side of the concrete pour. Once the concrete cures, the end stop is stripped away and there is an indentation in the side of the concrete panel. When the next panel is poured, the concrete flows into this notch to provide a structural key between the two panels.

The contractors for this work (E. E. Cruz and Tully Construction Co.) began excavation for the first slurry wall panels last Friday.



7/16/11



7/16/11
94th Street, NW corner - looking S

This is a temporary storage container for commercial and residential waste. The idea is that trash will be deposited inside the steel storage container instead of piled on the street.



7/16/11
btw. 94th & 95th Streets - looking S

This rather unremarkable image is actually sort of interesting. It shows a location on Second Avenue where the MTA's contractor has added an additional two feet to the width of walkway by moving the fence line slightly to the west - so the sidewalk in this block is now nine feet wide instead of just seven feet wide.

This is good news for people who use this sidewalk.



7/16/11
btw. 94th & 95th streets

Someone applied duct tape over part of this MTA sign, as you can see. The words that have been covered say "Work on this project is expected to be completed by Summer of 2011."



7/16/11
93rd Street

During my journey down Second Avenue, I found this large new sign posted at about a dozen different locations. (Left-click on the image if you wish to read what it says.)



7/16/11
87th Street - looking S

The contractor at this location has recently started to excavate the north construction shaft for the 86th Street station.



7/16/11
83rd Street - looking E

And at this location, the contractor is excavating the south construction shaft for the 86th Street station.



7/16/11
83rd Street - looking N

Another view of the future location of the south construction shaft.



7/16/11
72nd Street - looking N

The is a view of the nearly complete spoils conveyance structure at this location.



7/16/11
btw. 72nd & 73rd street - looking NE

On the Saturday of my visit, workers were testing the system by using the [yellow] gantry crane to move around the large white buckets. These buckets will will be used to lift spoils to the surface.



7/16/11



7/16/11
just north of 70th Street - looking S

Down near 70th Street, I was surprised to discover that the MTA was in the process of building a second spoils removal system for the 72nd Avenue station.

I say that I'm surprised because one would think that one spoils removal system would be enough to remove the material from the station cavern below.

One could assume that similar structures will be constructed for the excavation of the 86th Street station cavern, but I don't know for sure.

Nothing like this system was built to excavate the spoils that are being produced by the MTA's East Side Access project. For that project, the spoils are being taken to Queens via a conveyor system inside the tunnels. Why a similar system (to remove the spoils via the tunnels) is not being used for the 72nd Street (and 86th Street) station caverns, I do not know.

Update 7/18/11:
I've now been told that the volume of muck (rock) being generated at each shaft is what necessitated two complete spoils removal systems at 69th and 72nd streets.

One gantry system would not be able to keep up with the volume of material being produced by the 72nd Street station cavern, the cross-passages and the drill and blast tunnel construction in the west tube from 65th Street (where the TBM stopped) to the 63rd Street/Lexington Avenue station.

A reader of this blog pointed out to me that there are several material differences between the mucking operations on Second Avenue and the East Side Access (ESA) project.

First off, the rock being generated at the 86th and 72nd Street stations is “shot rock” (i.e. it is produced by blasting the rock) and it thus much larger than the rock from the TBM.

For the dump station (the vertical conveyor system) at 93rd Street to be used, it would necessitate the crushing of all rock below grade [like they do at ESA] before it could go on a conveyor system.

Also, at ESA, there was an existing conveyor system running back to Queens left from the TBM contract. There is no conveyor system as part of the 2nd Ave running tunnels, so one would have had to be built.

A final consideration is access. At ESA, one contractor is doing all of the TBM mining and cavern mining. At SAS, each station is a different contract and a conveyor system through different contractor’s work zones would raise issues of who would need to maintain the system and operate it - logistical/contractual nightmare.

The MTA is also looking to install concrete tunnel lining, signals, and track in the tunnel sections as the cavern mining is on-going, so a conveyor running through the tunnel would hamper these work items and push out the overall schedule.

Also, work in the launch box at 96th Street would need to wait until all mining was finished as the launch box currently holds the muck and all conveyor systems. The current schedule has the work in the launch box proceeding concurrently with the mining.



7/16/11
69th Street - looking E

At 69th Street, I came across a team of steel workers who were in the process of assembling the superstructure for the spoils conveyance system at this location.



7/16/11



7/16/11



7/16/11
Lexington Avenue/63rd Street Station
On the lower level (Queens bound) platform - looking E

At this location, you can see that the contractor has now removed most of the false ceiling and much of the decorative wall on the opposite side of the track.



7/16/11
Lexington Avenue/63rd Street station
On the lower level (Queens bound) platform - looking E



7/16/11
Lexington Avenue/63rd Street station

The upper level (Manhattan bound) platform at this station was closed for the weekend. When I was at the station, it was easy to hear that workers were actively performing demolition work on the upper level platform while I was in the station.


::


The images that follow were provided to me by Mark Lyon who lives in the neighborhood.

The first three images show road resurfacing work that was recently performed by the NYC DOT in the work zone north of 95th Street. This newly resurfaced roadway looks great, but I suspect that it won't be long before the contractor rips it up so that work on the 96th Station can continue.



Courtesy of Mark Lyon
7/9/11
96th Street - looking S

The machine shown above is used to grind away the top layers of the roadway.


Removing old pavement
Courtesy of Mark Lyon
7/9/11
97th Street - looking NW



Courtesy of Mark Lyon
7/9/11
96th Street - looking S

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These two images, also provide by Mark Lyon, show workers who are disassembling a large crawler crane at this location. From what I've been told, this work took place into the early morning hours (i.e. until about 3 a.m.) on Sunday 7/17/11.

The crane that was taken down is shown still upright in the fifth image of this blog posting. The crane was situated at the work site where the Ancillary Building No. 2 for the 96th Street station will be built.

Why it was necessary to perform this work in the middle of the night was not clear at the time that I posted this entry. However, it is my understanding that a permit had been issued for this work.


Bay Crane
Courtesy of Mark Lyon
7/17/11
97th Street, SW corner


Bay Crane
Courtesy of Mark Lyon
7/17/11
97th Street, SW corner

Note in particular how the crane is boomed-down across 97th Street in this image.


Update 8/9/11:
The NYC DOT issued three separate but related Street Construction Permits for this work. The permits allowed, among other things, the complete closure of 97th Street between 2nd & 3rd avenues.

Of particular note, is the specific stipulation, in each permit, that the work must take place between 9 p.m. on Saturday 7/16 and 6 a.m. on Sunday 7/17. This would explain why this work was performed in the middle of the night.


::

And finally... these two images, from the MTA's recent presentation to Community Board 8's Second Avenue Subway Task Force, show the progress that is being made below ground at the 72nd Street station cavern site.


Source: MTA Presentation to CB8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force, 6/22/11, p. 22



Source: MTA Presentation to CB8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force, 6/22/11, p. 23

Look carefully at the image above. In the lower left corner, you can see that they have now broken through the station cavern floor into the west TBM tunnel below.



::


Last Reported Location of the
Tunnel Boring Machine
just south of 75th Street
as of 6/30/11

TBM Run No. 2 (east tunnel)
Tunnel length: 7,789 linear feet (LF)
Start: just south of 92nd Street
End: Lexington Av / 63rd St Station
4,488 LF mined as of 6/30/11
3,301 LF to run

TBM Run No. 1 (west tunnel)
92nd Street to 65th Street
7,162 linear feet mined with TBM
Run completed 2/5/2011

::

June TBM Mining Data:
Distance mined: 1,646 linear feet (LF)
TBM mining days: 22
Avg. distance per day: 74.8 LF http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif


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The two images that follow were clearly not taken on Second Avenue! They were taken in Lübeck, a city on the Baltic Sea in the north of Germany, a few weeks ago while I was on vacation.

The images show trench construction in the middle of a city. I've included them here because I found it interesting to see how an urban trench is constructed in Germany - compared to the many trenches that have been built in support of Phase I of the Second Avenue subway.



7/2/11
Breite Str, Lübeck - near the Rathaus



7/2/11


:::::


Here's a listing of the recent additions
to the right-hand column of The Launch Box

Construction Update and Fence Wrapping
Second Avenue Subway Project Project Update for Community Board 8
MTA Capital Construction
6/22/11

Manhattan Chamber of Commerce Construction Scrim Proposal (Concept Only)
6/22/11

"Dust and Odors at Second Avenue Subway Construction Site"
By Amy Zimmer
DNAInfo.com - 6/24/11


Notice of Proposed Buy America Waiver
to Allow Bidder to Certify Compliance

Federal Transit Administration
Department of Transportation
Docket No. FTA-2011-0031
7/7/11

The MTA has asked the Federal Transit Administration to waive its Buy America requirements on the basis of public interest to permit the low bidder for a contract to construct the 86th Street Station for the Second Avenue Subway project to certify compliance with Buy America. The bidder certified non-compliance based on a misunderstanding of how FTA would apply its rules to certain construction materials. In fact, the low bidder is willing and able to comply with the Buy America rules. Without a waiver, MTA may spend an additional $32.9 million on the 86th Street Station without furthering the goals of Buy America.


Light Rail for Second Ave.: An idea almost gone
By Benjamin Kabak
2nd. Ave. Sagas - 7/8/11

"MTA close to awarding contract for Second Avenue subway tracks, signals and communications"
By Pete Donoghue
NY Daily News - 7/12/11

Underneath 2nd Ave., inching closer to a subway
By Benjamin Kabak
2nd. Ave. Sagas - 7/13/11

"Second Avenue Subway Construction Creates Many Realty Steals" (2:00)
By Jill Urban
NY1 - 7/15/11

Less than Picture Perfect:
The Legal Relationship between Photographers' Rights and Law Enforcement
By Morgan Leigh Manning
Tennessee Law Review
Vol. 78, p. 105, 2010