Millennium Line - Evergreen Extension | Completed

[queetz@home]

Wow! Thanks for the pics adrianroam95!

So on Tuesday March 27, the gantry crane was ready, March 28, they must have started lifting up the segments, and on March 29, they were finishing it up, so it is indeed 3 days to finish the segment prior to Cottonwood.

I wonder if they would able to position the gantry crane to be above Cottonwood today (if they haven't already) so they can start working on it and be finished by Tuesday (so by end of next week, the guideway will be finished up to the beginning of the centre of North Road).

I agree with OD about the columns being in reversed. Seems like a big blunder, but we don't know if its really meant like that (i.e. perhaps the guideway bank above the column with bigger square pads are steeper than the rest?). But I guess not much we can do about it...as long as the train is able to traverse that segment, who cares, right?

Question: One thing I am curious about...once the gantry crane reaches Gatineau Place and the last segment were to be lifted up, where would be supports for the front be in placed?

Currently, they are in place at the south side of a column,

but at Gatineau Place, the existing steel girders would be there, so no place to place the front supports and counterweight component.

Would those simply be placed on top of the steel guideways?

[trofirhen]

Maybe keep the lines color-coded, to show routings and destinations, and just give the lines numbers or letters? Politically incorrect, I know.

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by queetz@home

Wow! Thanks for the pics adrianroam95!

So on Tuesday March 27, the gantry crane was ready, March 28, they must have started lifting up the segments, and on March 29, they were finishing it up, so it is indeed 3 days to finish the segment prior to Cottonwood.

I wonder if they would able to position the gantry crane to be above Cottonwood today (if they haven't already) so they can start working on it and be finished by Tuesday (so by end of next week, the guideway will be finished up to the beginning of the centre of North Road).

I agree with OD about the columns being in reversed. Seems like a big blunder, but we don't know if its really meant like that (i.e. perhaps the guideway bank above the column with bigger square pads are steeper than the rest?). But I guess not much we can do about it...as long as the train is able to traverse that segment, who cares, right?

Question: One thing I am curious about...once the gantry crane reaches Gatineau Place and the last segment were to be lifted up, where would be supports for the front be in placed?



Currently, they are in place at the south side of a column,



but at Gatineau Place, the existing steel girders would be there, so no place to place the front supports and counterweight component.



Would those simply be placed on top of the steel guideways?

My guess is the blue "A Frame" legs (and the yellow base if needed) will be positioned on the trackbed of the steel girders, since there won't be any pads to rest on.

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by trofirhen

Maybe keep the lines color-coded, to show routings and destinations, and just give the lines numbers or letters? Politically incorrect, I know.

Just make sure the colours used are understood by the colour-blind.

"is this the red line train or the brown line?"

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Nice shots, thanks!



Looks like the middle and right columns are reversed in location.
You can also see that the height of the pads on the left column varies because the guideway banks on the curve.

Or the simpler excuse is the top of the column was finished a foot (or so) shorter than it should have been. worse f-ups have happened on less complex jobs.

I can't see why you would normally want the pads that the guideway sits on to be so much thicker on just this column, compared to the rest of the columns nearby.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

My guess is the blue "A Frame" legs (and the yellow base if needed) will be positioned on the trackbed of the steel girders, since there won't be any pads to rest on.

and maybe by that time the steel box girders will have a concrete trackbed on top of them?

[trofirhen]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

Just make sure the colours used are understood by the colour-blind.

"is this the red line train or the brown line?"

Yes, but is this not precisely parallel to someone unable to read?

"is this the expo line train or the millenium?"

I perceive no difference in your example and what already exists.

One thing I think is important is that the destination terminii are listed in the line number.
(In Paris, Montreal, Stockholm, Frankfurt and other cities, the destinations form part of the line identity)

A question like "is this the Waterfrontont-King George line," or such, is perhaps more easily handled by visually-changed people.

I might keep the lines different colours, perhaps with numbers or letters, with the destination as the line identifier.

[jsbertram]

Resumption of Tunnel Boring

Boring of the two-kilometre tunnel for the Evergreen Line will restart in early June. The tunnel boring machine (TBM) is anticipated to break through at the tunnel exit portal located just south of Kemsley Avenue on the west side Clarke Road by the end of the 2014. Once tunnel boring is complete, the TBM will be removed and crews will begin the installation of concrete within the tunnel, followed by the installation of trackwork and power systems.

more info:
http://egrtconstruction.ca/media-centre/news/resumption-of-tunnel-boring/

or
http://egrtconstruction.ca/wp-content/up...on-of-Tunnel-Boring-Operations-FINAL.pdf

[aberdeen5698]

Originally Posted by trofirhen

Yes, but is this not precisely parallel to someone unable to read?

The difference is that a fairly significant percentage of the population is colour blind compared to those whose eyesight is so bad that they can't read. And it's very simple to choose colours that are easily distinguished by most colour blind people, it simply requires the foresight to do so.

[d'ann]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

Resumption of Tunnel Boring

Boring of the two-kilometre tunnel for the Evergreen Line will restart in early June. The tunnel boring machine (TBM) is anticipated to break through at the tunnel exit portal located just south of Kemsley Avenue on the west side Clarke Road by the end of the 2014. Once tunnel boring is complete, the TBM will be removed and crews will begin the installation of concrete within the tunnel, followed by the installation of trackwork and power systems.

more info:
http://egrtconstruction.ca/media-centre/news/resumption-of-tunnel-boring/

or
http://egrtconstruction.ca/wp-content/up...on-of-Tunnel-Boring-Operations-FINAL.pdf

I am confused. I had thought that the concrete rings were to be installed as the boring machine progressed (bore through dirt, then install ring, then bore again) so I do not get the statement " Once tunnel boring is complete, the TBM will be removed and crews will begin the installation of concrete within the tunnel, followed by the installation of trackwork and power systems". My assumption of a continual process was based on the info presented in news article, specifcally the example provided in the Barcelona subway project video at http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2013/10/evergreen-line-tunnel-boring-machine/. Can someone explain how I am misunderstanding?

[officedweller]

They probably mean pouring concrete to create a level trackbed within the tunnel. Since this is such a wide tunnel, the trackbed will have to be fairly high off the lowpoint of the tunnel floor to be wide enough for 2 tracks.

Also, there was a note somewhere that there would be a (vertical) concrete wall separating the northbound and southbound tracks.

[nname]

Based on presentation to Port Moody and Coquitlam council, seems like the guideway and tracks for North Road and Port Moody section would be pretty much complete before the end of this year.

This is what I gathered from the presentation to Port Moody Council:

From tunnel to at-grade section near Clarke:
guideway completed
track installation underway

At-grade section near Clarke:
soil mixing underway to be completed by summer
guideway to be completed by October
track installation to follow

Moody Centre Station:
earthwork and fundation underway
station construction completed by summer 2015

At-grade section near Golden Spike Lane:
guideway almost completed, to be done by summer
track installation in summer

Elevated CPR overpass:
guideway construction underway, to be completed by August

Inlet Centre Station:
construction of exterior wall underway
roof and glass construction in fall 2014
substantial completion by spring 2015

[d'ann]

Originally Posted by officedweller

They probably mean pouring concrete to create a level trackbed within the tunnel. Since this is such a wide tunnel, the trackbed will have to be fairly high off the lowpoint of the tunnel floor to be wide enough for 2 tracks.

Also, there was a note somewhere that there would be a (vertical) concrete wall separating the northbound and southbound tracks.

Thanks. That makes perfect sense. I was paranoid because I live beside the portal and when the boring machine was running, our houses and driveways were vibrating and I just could not imagine it going under our homes next week without a well supported tunnel in place.

[adrianroam95]

Originally Posted by queetz@home

I wonder if they would able to position the gantry crane to be above Cottonwood today (if they haven't already) so they can start working on it and be finished by Tuesday (so by end of next week, the guideway will be finished up to the beginning of the centre of North Road).

The gantry crane was moved this morning such that the "main" part of the crane is now above Cottonwood Ave. When I passed by that area at 9pm today (Friday May 30th) they had northbound traffic funnelling into one lane which was diverted west of the columns, as they were hoisting the first guideway segments into place above Cottonwood.

I must say, progress is sure moving along pretty fast.

[queetz@home]

Thanks Adrian! So definitely by the end of next week, or even earlier, the main part of the crane should be at the middle of North Road, eh?

I can't recall if they actually work on Saturdays...

Originally Posted by nname

Based on presentation to Port Moody and Coquitlam council, seems like the guideway and tracks for North Road and Port Moody section would be pretty much complete before the end of this year.

Makes sense. After all, why would they already have those stack of rails by the South Tunnel portal if they weren't going to do anything with them? It wouldn't surprise me that they would start installing them sometime in July or August. Those rails are starting to...rust.

[jsbertram]

Not to gloat, but Seattle's TBM is still stuck.

Seattle Tunnel Project Isn't Boring
City Faces Cost Concerns, Completion Delays as Mammoth Drill Sits Broken; a Tweet From Below
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303851804579558370315425370

[giallo]

^ That sucks. Hopefully, they figure out how to get through the steel section. Six month is a long time to have a expensive piece of equipment like that sitting around.

[twoNeurons]

There are definitely huge advantages to running to Production Way:

Better access to Braid Station
Braid is a popular transfer station for express buses from Surrey (#555) and express buses from the Tri-cities area. That area will also be more important going forward as the community on United & King Edward gets built.

SFU students coming into Braid by bus will not have to transfer at Lougheed.
M-Line West passengers can easily transfer at Production Way so they don't have to fight with the crowd at Lougheed.

Sapperton station
There's a whole community being built there which has LOTS of rental units in it. Better access to SFU for them. Also, Translink has a building there.

SFU Surrey
A whole bunch of students who will avoid the double transfer from their Surrey campus.

SFU Burnaby
Centralized Transfer for all students from either the Evergreen Line or M-Line or Expo Line.

Downtown to SFU is still a one-train ride

[SFUVancouver]

^ I agree on all those points. I hope that when Translink redoes the signage they can finally rename 'Production Way-University' to 'Production Way-SFU'. We don't have bus routes going to UBC called "99 University", "49 University", "480 University". etc., nor does the Millennium Line have its terminus at "Community College-Clark" station.

[nname]

Originally Posted by SFUVancouver

^ I agree on all those points. I hope that when Translink redoes the signage they can finally rename 'Production Way-University' to 'Production Way-SFU'. We don't have bus routes going to UBC called "99 University", "49 University", "480 University". etc., nor does the Millennium Line have its terminus at "Community College-Clark" station.

That wouldn't work well if they are going to build a gondola.. I assume "SFU" would be better suited for the station on top of the mountain..