Update - 3/30/11 Two recent images of the TBM under 2nd Avenue have now been added to this posting.
::
The MTA announced on its web site on Monday that the Second Avenue Subway Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) is once again on the move.
The machine will now mine the second (east) tunnel for the project - from a point about just south of 92nd Street down to 63rd Street - a length of 7,800 linear feet.
Near the end of this run, the machine will make a relatively tight westerly curve into the existing 63rd Street Station / Lexington Avenue station. (A map of the TBM's route can be found on this Google Map link.)
The connection at 63rd Street will be to a short piece of tunnel, known as a bellmouth, that was constructed at this station back in the late 1970s. (A diagram showing the 63rd Street bellmouth can be found on this link.)
During the first 200 feet of this run, the TBM will be mining through an area under Second Avenue that contractors had recently frozen solid. This was done intentionally so that the TBM could safely bore through the weak rock structure in this area.
The TBM previously mined 7,162 feet for the first (west) tunnel. The 485-ton, 450-foot-long machine began mining in June 2010 from 92nd Street to 65th Street and was then disassembled and pulled back to the TBM launch box at 92nd Street.
Phase I of the Second Avenue subway (i.e. the extension of Q Line service to the Upper East side) is currently scheduled to be completed by December 2016.
These two images, which were provide to me by e-mail late today, show the TBM as it is now positioned at the head of east tunnel.
In this image you are looking at the southern end of the Second Avenue subway TBM launch box. The soon to be minded east tunnel is on the left and the new west tunnel is on the right.
The head of the TBM is positioned inside a 40-foot starter tunnel that was blasted out about a year ago.
This zoom shot provides more detail. Look closely and you will see a number of interesting things. (left-click either image for a larger view)
As example -
Look on the left-hand side of the image and you will see an open umbrella that has been mounted on a yellow boom. Its hard to tell, but it looks like this umbrella has been setup to protect one of the total stations that keep the TBM lined up as it mines.
Also on the left, on the floor, you can see a temporary conveyor belt. Normally the muck from the TBM mining process is transported to waiting muck cars via a conveyor that runs down the middle of the machine.
The sunlight in these images is coming in through the glory hole in front of Delizia's Ristorante & Pizza on the SE corner of East 92nd Street and Second Avenue.
Recently, the bid results for the contract covering the second phase of the 86th Street station construction were made public - and here are the results.
Bid/Contract Number: C-26008 (also known as Contract 5B)
86th Street Cavern Mining & Heavy Civil Works
A source told me that MTA's engineers expected the bids for this contract to come in at around $400 million. As such, the MTA surely must be pleased that the competitive bidding process for this contract produced such a good bid.
The joint venture partners for the low bid are Skanska and Traylor Brothers, two major players in the market for civil engineering construction and infrastructure projects. Skanska already has extensive experience working on this project, as one of the three contractors building the SAS tunnels and launch box structure.
Contract C-26008 includes, among other things:
- mining of the 86th Street station cavern as well as mine shafts and adits for the entrances, ancillaries and cross passages;
- building demolition work at 83rd and 86th streets in advance of work on the construction of entrances and ancillaries;
- underpinning of existing buildings adjacent to the ancillaries and
Entrance 1;
- the construction of the permanent structure from station invert level to the top of ground level;
- restoration of the surface of Second Avenue and cross streets which will also include the restoration of roads, sidewalks, and soft and hard landscaping.
Further contract details can be found on this link to the MTA's Invitation For Bid Notice.
At the last meeting of the CB8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force, the MTA said that they expect to award this contract in April or May 2011 with construction to start sometime during the summer.
What is not clear at the moment is (a) where all of the money for this contract will come from, since only the first two years of the 2010-2014 Capital Program are currently funded, and (b) how the recent lawsuit (to block the planned construction of station entrances on the north side of 86th Street - Yorkshire Towers LP vs. DOT et al) will affect this contract.
::
In other news, a group of students from Hunter College Department of Urban Affairs and Planning is working on a project, together with Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney's office, to examine the subway construction on Second Avenue. The research will include the subway construction's impact on the community, lessons learned, etc.
The students are interviewing key figures involved in the project, and have already conducted one-on-one interviews with representatives of the Community Board 8 Second Avenue Subway Task Force, the MTA, Second Avenue Business Association and local senior centers.
They are also asking members of the community to take a few moments to fill out a short online survey so that they can gain additional insight in to the project.
It's safe to say that I'm not the only person taking pictures of the construction work on Second Avenue.
Often when I'm out walking, I observe people stopping to look at the ongoing construction work. They often pause to get a closer look at the machines, and men and women, who are working daily to build the new line. Many people bring along their kids, who never seem to tire of watching the complex operations.
Sometimes, I observe people using a mobile phone or camera to capture what they see. Why they do this is not always clear. Maybe to augment their memory, or maybe to share on sites like Facebook, or maybe just because they feel they should take a picture. Surely most of the shots they take won't be mounted in albums, or even printed!
I remember well the evening last spring when they lowered the cutterhead for the TBM down into the launch box. On that warm evening, almost everyone who was out and about stopped to watch what was happening, and take pictures -- including me.
Recently I discovered, on the Internet, that photographer David Beckerman (www.beckermanphoto.com) also has been out taking pictures of the scene on Second Avenue.
With his permission, I've posted a few of Beckerman's images for others to enjoy. (If you click on any image, you will be taken to David's blog where you can read more about a particular photograph.)
"Become Your Dream" Photograph by David Beckerman
Photograph by David Beckerman
Photograph by David Beckerman
"Delivery on Second Avenue" Photograph by David Beckerman
"2nd Avenue Subway, Scaffold" Photograph by David Beckerman
This 27-page reports includes a great deal of detail on the project, as one might expect.
After looking through the report, I pulled out the following highlights that I thought readers of this blog might be interested in:
The forecast date for revenue service on the new line under Second Avenue remains December 30th, 2016.
The current schedule includes 176 calendar days of schedule contingency(*). This is an eight day improvement over the 168 day number detailed in the 3Q2010 FTA report.
The Final Design of the remaining contracts, for Phase I of the Second Avenue Subway, has now been submitted by MTACC's Designer - which means that the project's design phase is now complete.
(*) Schedule contingency is planned extra duration in the schedule to allow for unexpected delays.
Here's a copy of the current Schedule and Proposed Schedule for the project:
To shift gears - just a bit - away from the schedules and the plans and the charts...
Have you ever wondered what kind of job titles might apply to the men and women whose job it is to work down in the tunnels?
Here's a job title listing that I came across a few weeks ago for the so called Free Air Tunnel Workers, a.k.a. The Sandhogs.
Maintenance Men
Inside Muck Lock Tenders
Pump Men
Electricians
Cement Finishers
Caulkers
Hydraulic Men
Shield Men
Monorail Operators
Motor Men
Conveyor Men
Powder Carriers
Pan Men
Riggers
Chuck Tenders
Track Men
Painters
Nippers
Brakemen
Cable Men
Hose Men
Grout Men
Gravel Men
Form Workers
Concrete Workers
Tunnel Laborers
Mole Nipper
(I'd love to know what a Mole Nipper does.)
:::::
Here's a listing of the recent additions to the right-hand column of The Launch Box
The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce and MTA Capital Construction hosted a press conference on February 11th. The well attended event celebrated the launch of a new campaign: “Shop Second Avenue...It’s Worth It!"
The campaign intends to affirm that Second Avenue’s shops, restaurants and neighborhood businesses are open for business during the construction of the Second Avenue subway.
As part of the marketing campaign, a Shop Second Avenue MetroCard will be released in April. The card will be available in all Lexington Avenue 4/5/6 stations from 51st Street to 103rd Street, as well as in the N/Q/R Line stations located at Lexington Avenue/59th Street and 5th Avenue/59th Street and the Lexington Avenue/63rd Street F Line Station.
Promotional Shop Second Avenue signage will also be introduced in subway stations and bus lines to promote the Second Avenue corridor as a shopping and dining destination.
Nancy Ploeger, president, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce; Jeffrey Bernstein, chair, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce; Michael Horodniceanu, President of MTA Capital Construction; Assembly Member Jonathan L. Bing, and Council Member Dan Garodnick.
2/11/11
2/11/11
As part of the campaign, MTA Capital Construction unveiled its so-called "model block” concept on Second Avenue between East 92nd and 93rd streets.
The prototype block portrays an environment with fence wrapping; new and improved fencing and repainted barriers; safety improvements to sight lines for pedestrians and vehicles; a large Shop Second Avenue advertisement on the muck conveyor structure; and on each corner, pedestrian way-finding signage that lists the businesses located on the block.
2/11/11
East 92nd, NE corner - looking W
Council Member Dan Garodnick (on the left) listens as MTA Capital Construction President Michael Horodniceanu explains the new way-finding signage.
2/11/11
btw. 92nd and 93rd streets - looking E
MTA Capital Construction President Michael Horodniceanu holds an impromptu press conference of his own in front of the muck tower to answer reporters' questions.
2/11/11
92nd, NE corner - looking W
In this image you can see the roadway delineators, made by the company Flexstake, that have been set up to separate the roadway from the pedestrian path through the work zone at 92nd Street.
2/11/11
This is a closeup shot of the mesh fence wrapping that is being used in the model block.
2/11/11
93rd Street, SE corner - looking W
2/11/11
93rd Street - looking SE
::
After the press conference, I took a walk down Second Avenue, starting at 101st Street, to have a look at the various work sites. Here is what I observed --
2/11/11
99th Street - looking S
The contractor at this location is continuing to relocate utilities on the west side of Second Avenue.
2/11/11
btw. 97th and 99th streets - looking E
A nice example of the maze of utility lines that must be relocated in this area under Second Avenue.
2/11/11
97th Street, NE corner - looking SW
A view from across Second Avenue of the site of the former Century Lumber yard. This site will eventually be transformed into Ancillary Building No. 2 for the 96th Street station.
The large, yellow mobile drilling rig shown in this image is being used to install secant piles at this location.
2/11/11
97th Street, just west of 2nd Ave - looking E
A different view of the same site.
2/11/11
The workers in the image are lowering a tremie pipe, with a funnel on the top, into a hole. Wet concrete will soon be poured into the funnel to fill part of the secant pile that is under construction.
2/11/11
The worker in this image is performing various tests on the wet concrete to confirm its consistency.
2/11/11
just N of 96th Street - looking S
More utility relocation work.
btw. 91st & 92nd streets - looking W
The ground freeze process continues at this location on Second Avenue - in preparation for the start of TBM Run No. 2 (the east tunnel).
2/11/11
84th Street, NE corner - looking S
Material is delivered to the work site.
2/11/11
83rd Street, SW corner - looking N
A pedestrian's view of the maze of fencing in this area.
2/11/11
73rd Street - looking S
The access shaft near 72nd Street can be seen, if you look carefully, in the distance. (It's in front of the mobile crane.) Dust, visible in this image and the image below, was billowing out of the shaft when I took these images.
2/11/11
A closeup shot, with the dust clearly in view now.
2/11/11
259 E 72nd Street
This sign was posted in the window of Falk Surgical Supply. They have had to move so that their building can be taken down to make room for an entrance and ancillary building for the 72nd Street station.
2/11/11
259 E 72nd Street, NW corner
A view of the inside of the former Falk Surgical Supply shop.
::
In other news:
- Community Board 8's Second Avenue Subway Task Force met this past Tuesday evening. The MTA's presentation at this meeting can be found on this link: Construction Update - 2/15/11
- The bids for the 86th Street station cavern contract (Ref: Contract C-26008) were opened on Februrary 4th. The MTA has announced that they are reviewing the bids and they expect to award the contract in April or May. Details of the bidding will be provided on the blog as soon as they are posted on the MTA Bid Results web page.
- The owner and tenants association of Yorkshire Towers, a rental apartment building at 315 East 86th Street, have filed a civil lawsuit against the DOT, FTA, and MTA to block the planned construction of station entrances on the north side of 86th Street in front of their building. A copy of the complaint can be found below.
For further reading I suggest having a look at Ben Kabak's report on the case on his blog 2nd Ave. Sagas.
