Volume 14
Number 14
Oct. 24, 1984
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Work Crews on Schedule
by Steve Morris
Fresh Air: Snaking its way into the west portal of the
Mount Macdonald tunnel, a huge fan and pipe replenish fresh air at the tunnel face where workmen are using diesel
powered digging equipment to bore into the mountain.
Revelstoke, B.C. - Constuction crews now are drilling and
blasting their way into the east side of Mount Macdonald as work continues on the 9.11-mile
(14.66-kilometre) tunnel through the mountain.
"They're about 33-feet (10-metres) in", said John Fox,
vice-president, engineering, special projects. "They will keep going until they're about
400-feet (120-metres) into the rock. By then we expect to have the tunnel boring
machine in
place".
Meanwhile, at the west portal, tunnelling through soft ground is continuing beyond the 880-foot
(268-metre) reinforced concrete box under the Trans-Canada Highway.
"The Mount Macdonald tunnel will be the longest railway tunnel in North America and is the focal point of
the Rogers Pass project, but the real tough work is taking place along the 10.7-mile
(17-kilometre) surface route", said Mr. Fox.
On the surface route, about 175 construction workers using more than 135 pieces of heavy equipment are preparing
the route for the new westbound rail line and are realigning two sections of the existing main line.
In preparing the surface route, more than 1.5-million cubic yards (1.14-million cubic
metres) of earth and nearly 520,000 cubic yards (400,000 cubic metres) of rock must be
excavated.
The construction crews are in a race against the Canadian climate.
Snow has already fallen on the upper slopes of the Selkirk Mountains and it's only a matter of time before work
on the surface route will have to stop until spring.
Tunnelling will continue year-round.
This CP Rail News article is copyright
1984 by Canadian Pacific Railway and is reprinted here with their permission. All photographs, logos, and
trademarks are the property of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company.
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