Construction for the Hudson Tunnel Project has restarted on all sites but the Gateway Development Commission (GDC) has warned it could be halted again if federal funding does not continue.
On October 1 last year the federal government withheld its funding and work on the project was suspended on February 6. Some jobsites opened again in the final week of February when federal funds were released.
The GDC has now warned it may have to pause construction again in two to three months if federal funding disbursements do not continue. In addition, contract awards for the Hudson River Tunnel and New Jersey Surface Alignment contracts remain on hold.
“The Hudson Tunnel Project is the most urgent passenger rail project in the country, and GDC’s mission is to deliver it as soon as possible. Our workers are back, and we are moving full steam ahead across all our construction sites, but we will have no choice but to stop work again if the federal government does not continue to disburse the funds that are committed to the project,” said GDC CEO Tom Prendergast.
“This project is too important to delay. That’s why we’re doing everything possible to regain consistent and predictable access to all our federal funding so we can keep our workers on the job and deliver the reliable, modern rail transit Americans deserve.”
Despite the downtime in February, GDC says it has made “significant progress” on the project this year.
The Tonnelle Avenue Bridge & Utility Relocation Project has been completed. The bridge structure was finished late last year, opening space beneath Tonnelle Avenue for the TBMs to be assembled. Since then, the road on the bridge deck has been completed.
The first TBM for the Palisades Tunnel Project has arrived at the construction site in North Bergen, New Jersey, and is being prepared for assembly, while the components for the second TBM will begin arriving on site this month.
Also, GDC’s contractor completed installation of the Hudson County Access Shaft slurry wall, creating a watertight perimeter for the shaft. Excavation will begin this spring.
Work has also started on the installation of pipes and construction of an overwater platform for ground freezing work around the Manhattan bulkhead in preparation for tunnel boring.
In the Hudson River, the cofferdam in the Hudson River has been shifted east toward Manhattan and deep soil mixing to stabilise the riverbed for tunnel boring is under way within the cofferdam.
On the Hudson Yards Concrete Casting – Section 3 tunnel box, the invert slab has been completed and installation of the walls is in progress. More than 11,000 cubic yards of concrete have been poured to date.
