Vol. 17 No. 4
April, 1987
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Stay Safe in 87
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Much More to Do at Massive
Project
By Tana Hobbs
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In coming weeks, workers expect to achieve a breakthrough at
the 1.8-km Mount Shaughnessy Tunnel. Work on the tunnel is expected to be completed next
year.
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Rogers Pass, British Columbia - After more than 23 months of drilling and blasting, crews working on the
1.8-km Mount Shaughnessy Tunnel are set to break through the east end in coming weeks.
"Excavation of the short tunnel, using the top heading and bench method, began in June, 1985," said Pete
Penner, Rogers Pass Project's tunnel superintendent. "Fractured phyllitic rock conditions slowed the initial
schedule."
Crews are removing the top four-metre heading, installing steel support ribs and shotcrete in areas of
soft ground. Concrete lining will be installed in this top portion.
Once the tunnel is broken through, crews will back up to the west entrance to remove the bottom
four-metre bench. Steel ribs will be extended to the tunnel floor and concrete lining of the lower
area will be done with these operations.
More than 88,000 cubic metres of material will have been removed by the time the tunnel is completed. The finished
interior will be illuminated, have a height of 7.87 metres, and a width of 5.49 metres.
Two refuge stations for maintenance crews, will be located in the tunnel, 886 metres apart. These
eight-metre by six-metre excavated areas will be large enough for personnel to move a
track motor car out of the way of trains while they're working inside the tunnel.
Final stages after excavation include installation of the sub-invert concrete slab, drainage pipe, and
the concrete roadbed. Rail will be laid on rubber pads and will be fastened with Pandrol clips.
Completion of the Mount Shaughnessy Tunnel is scheduled for 1988.
East and west ends of the 14.6-km Mount MacDonald Tunnel met on 24 Oct 1986, when a
200-kilogram explosion marked the breakthrough 349 metres below the summit of Rogers Pass.
"Progress in 1987 will centre on the two tunnels, ventilation shaft, and completion of the
1,229-metre viaduct," Mr. Penner said. "Crews inside the tunnels will continue throughout
the year. The ventilation shaft is scheduled to hole through this month. Span installation and final work at the
viaduct should be complete later this summer."
Completion of the entire Rogers Pass Project, which includes 17 kilometres of surface route and six bridges is
scheduled for late 1988.
This CP Rail News article is copyright
1987 by the 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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