TUNNEL DESIGN FOR THE WATERVIEW

CONNECTION PROJECT

D. Maconochie ■ Parsons Brinckerhoff

S.R.L. Pradhan ■ Parsons Brinckerhoff

M. Cameron ■ Parsons Brinckerhoff

ABSTRACT
The Waterview Connection project will complete Auckland’s Western Ring Route, which
will provide a high quality strategic alternative to State Highway One for travel through
and within New Zealand’s largest city. The design, construction and initial operation of
a new 4.8 km section of motorway connecting State Highways 20 and 16 is the New
Zealand Transport Agency’s largest and most challenging transport project ever. The
Waterview Connection project will construct twin three-lane motorway tunnels 2.4 km
long and 13.1 m internal diameter. Tunnelling is scheduled to begin, using an earth
pressure balance tunnel boring machine in late 2013. The tunnels will pass beneath an
urban area and a major local arterial road. This paper describes the overall design and
construction for the underground works. It summaries the design analysis, the basis
for choosing the tunneling boring method rather than a sequential excavation method,
and the proposed construction sequence. An invert culvert was requested by the client
post-tender, to provide access to utilities during operations. As a result, an innovative
construction process was developed for invert construction behind the TBM that is
independent of tunnel excavation advance rates. The design and proposed construc-
tion of the sixteen cross-passages linking the two tunnels using sequential excavation
method, each about 5 m in diameter, is described.

INTRODUCTION
The Waterview Connection is the New Zealand Transport Agency’s (NZTA) largest and
most challenging project to date. It will deliver an extra 5 km of six-lane motorway
through and beneath the city’s western suburbs to link State Highways 20 and 16.
The project will complete a high-quality, 48 km, strategic alternative to SH1 to reduce
congestion in central Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city and economic powerhouse.
The Western Ring Route was prioritised by the government as a Road of National
Significance that will stimulate economic growth regionally and nationally and help to
shape the future development of Auckland.
The Waterview Connection project scope includes the design, construction and
commissioning of the missing motorway link. The tunnel portion of the new link will be
completed using a custom-built, 14.5 m diameter earth pressure balance (EPB) tunnel
boring machine (TBM). The EPB TBM will bore twin tunnels up to 45 m deep, passing
beneath the layers of basalt that remain from the region‘s past volcanic activity.
The NZTA chose an alliance procurement model as the most appropriate method
to deliver a project of this complexity and significance. Under this model, the partici-
pants—including the client—work together following principles of honesty, equality and
agreed accountabilities to promote innovative thinking and outstanding results.

171
172 Design and Planning

Figure 1. Project location

Following a competitive tender process, NZTA, as the client, appointed a combined

local and international consortium, known as the Well-Connected Alliance (WCA), to
manage the design, construction and initial operation of the Waterview Connection. The
Alliance comprises Fletcher Construction, McConnell Dowell Constructors, Parsons
Brinckerhoff NZ, Beca Infrastructure, Tonkin and Taylor, Japanese construction com-
pany Obayashi Corporation and the NZTA. This alliance brings together the knowledge
and strong, home-grown reputation of leading New Zealand engineering companies
with the tunnelling expertise of its international partners.
This paper summarises the tunnel design and construction methodology used on
the Waterview Project. A specific part of the conceptual design effort was to develop
the geological interpretation in more detail, which allowed alternative designs for the
various methods of construction to be reviewed against cost and risk factors, including
the sequential excavation method (SEM) and a number of TBM options. Multicriteria
analysis concluded that tunnel construction by EPB TBM best addressed the project‘s
geotechnical risks and uncertainties while minimising cost and program risk. Criteria
considered during this evaluation were safety, cost, program, risk/opportunity, con-
struction sequence and sustainability.
Excavation by TBM reduces both the magnitude and extent of anticipated settle-
ment compared with SEM. The building damage category assessment estimated the
number of properties potentially susceptible to damage was reduced from 39 to 17.
Impacts on services and infrastructure are also similarly reduced.
The TBM will also allow WCA to make full use of our team’s local and international
strengths in EPB tunnelling to achieve major savings. Member organisations of our
consortium are involved in the design and construction of several major large diameter
EPB tunnel projects and Obayashi, in particular, has developed unique construction
skills to successfully operate large diameter EPB TBM at shallow depth. Team mem-
bers also have recent EPB TBM experience in Auckland excavating tunnels in East
Coast Bays Formation (ECBF) (Figure 1).

TUNNEL LINING DESIGN

The mainline tunnel comprises a single pass precast concrete segmental lining with
a nominal internal diameter of 13.1 m. The lining is 450 mm thick and uses a conven-
tional configuration of nine interconnected segments and a smaller key segment. The
 Tunnel Design for the Waterview Connection Project 173

Shear Cam

450mm

2000mm

Figure 2. Typical segment

rings are either straight, left- or right-hand tapered, with the tapers specified based on
the minimum horizontal radius of the curvature along the alignment. The lining will be
installed inside the tail skin of the shield and grouted from the tail skin as the machine
pushes forward. The rings are 2 m wide with a watertight compression gasket around
each segment.
The assumed ground conditions along the tunnel alignment are expected to be
variable. Around the portals the expected conditions consists of soft ground under shal-
low cover. Challenges encountered during the project thus far include:
■■ large diameter tunnel (13.1 m nominal internal diameter—using steel fibre
reinforced concrete (SFRC) for the majority of tunnel lining)
■■ variable/mixed ground condition
■■ low cover with soft ground
■■ tunnelling under major arterial road, Great North Road (GNR)
The design of pre-cast segmental lining on the Waterview Project has adopted
state-of-the-art techniques to develop a cost-effective solution. The small number of
precedent linings designed of this size with steel fibre reinforcement instead of con-
ventional reinforcement required extensive detailed modeling, review of other similar
project designs and thorough peer review. Key features of the segmental lining are:
■■ SFRC used for most of the tunnel segmental lining
■■ shear cams to maintain ring shape at shallow depth
■■ ethylene polythene diene monomer gaskets
■■ shear pin connection
A typical example of segment is shown below in Figure 2.
Two reinforcement arrangements have been detailed to meet the anticipated load
conditions:
■■ Type 1 is SFRC
■■ Type 2 is a conventionally reinforced concrete (CRC) segment
Type 1 segments have been designed to be used along the majority of the tunnel
alignment; they contain conventional reinforcement ladders to prevent bursting from
the TBM ram pressures and at longitudinal joints and steel fibre reinforced concrete.
Type 2 segments have been designed to be used in the low cover sections next
to the portals and near faulted ground conditions where increased support is required.
This type has a conventional reinforcement cage with plain concrete.
174 Design and Planning

The segmental lining employs a conventional configuration of nine interconnected

segments and a smaller key segment. Shear cams have been provided on the circum-
ferential face of the segments to allow the rings to interlock and behave as a single
structure, rather than individual rings. This design feature is of particular benefit in
low cover, where confining pressures are restricted and there is greater risk of ring
deformation. The spear bolt connection system will be used to secure adjacent seg-
ments and rings during the ring build. The cam helps to minimise lipping and stepping.
High quality concrete and ethylene polythene diene monomer gaskets will contribute to
maintaining the lining’s watertightness for the entire design life, greatly reducing long-
term maintenance costs.

DESIGN METHODOLOGY
The segmental lining of the mainline tunnels has been designed to achieve a minimum
100-year life with no maintenance. A full range of design and analytical methods have
been used, including two-dimensional and three-dimensional finite element modelling.
The combinations of effects judged to be critical of lining design were emphasised.
Particular attention was given to sections of the tunnel with the reduced ground cover
and sections where unfavorable ground conditions are expected. Sensitivity analysis
were used to confirm the design is suitably robust and can cope with worst credible
conditions.
The geometry of the segmental lining was developed to be compatible with the
TBM. Specific geometric considerations included:
■■ providing enough space to install the key segment
■■ specifying optimum taper so the segmental lining can achieve the required
horizontal curves without packers on the circumferential joints
■■ providing enough space to insert spear bolts when erecting the segments
■■ applying TBM thrust pressure across the maximum width of the circumferen-
tial joint bearing area
■■ detailing joints to consider the allowable 1% squatting of the rings
■■ ensuring that the contact area between segments will only occur across the
designed bearing surface so that the caulking and gasket recesses will not be
overloaded during maximum ‘bird-mouthing’
A number of approaches were used to assess the structural adequacy of the lining to
support long-term loading:
■■ a first pass ‘closed form solution’
■■ two-dimensional ‘bedded beam’ plane frame model analyses
■■ three-dimensional ‘plate element model’ analyses
Closed form solutions were used for sensitivity analyses for differing load combina-
tions and material parameters. The formulae are used to estimate maximum hoop load
and bending moment, taking into account the resistance of the lining.
The two dimensional ‘bedded beam’ analyses were used to assess the structural
response of the lining to various imposed load combinations to examine the influence
of joint behaviour. A rigorous three-dimensional plate element model was developed to
more accurately explore the coupling action of adjacent rings around the circumferen-
tial joints. At the interface between adjacent segments, rigid links and contact elements
have been used to model the action of joints to pivot about the edge of the joint-bearing
surface. The coupling effect of adjacent rings has also been considered by introducing
a second ring that has been rotated by the roll pitch. The presence of the shear cams
 Tunnel Design for the Waterview Connection Project 175

and circumferential dowels has also been included to assess the true interaction of
adjacent rings.
The amount of bird-mouthing of the joint is related to the extent of the calculated
lining deformation. The precast segmental tunnel lining design has been checked
against an absolute deformation value. The combination of this rotation with high axial
forces applied through the joint causes the development of an asymmetric strain profile
across the joint face, with the greatest strain a the point of rotation. Segments have
been designed such that they have capacity to resist these non-uniform induced bend-
ing moments when the highest axial loading is applied.
The rotation of joints and axial loading has been compared using the three-dimen-
sional finite element models. Longitudinal joints have also been checked using empiri-
cal methods to confirm consequential tensile bursting stresses that have developed
immediately behind the joint faces can be resisted.

WATERPROOFING
This requirement relates to the permanent condition, whereby the permanent lining will
be designed to be effectively impermeable. For other tunnel elements such as cross
passages and low point sump where initial support will be used, this initial support can
be designed to be drained provided the permanent lining is undrained and a water
proofing membrane is used. The allowable post-construction groundwater seepage
must meet the following criteria:
■■ Total seepage inflow is limited to 1 litre per second.
■■ Tunnel must not be visibly wet.
■■ Permanent treatments must be used as required so that any water present
on internal tunnel surfaces does not affect safety, durability and functionality.
■■ Groundwater seepage must not be visible or drip onto the road pavements,
walkways, egress passages and plant and equipment rooms.

GROUND CONDITIONS
For the most part, the tunnels pass through sandstone of varying strength and degrees
of weathering, except at the north portal where the tunnel will be partially within soil.
The segmental lining has been analyzed and designed to resist the worst credible
combinations of internally and externally applied loadings (see Figure 3 and Table 1).

CONSTRUCTION
An EPB TBM provides the best capability to handle the varying soil and rock conditions
that will be encountered. It will also cope with groundwater inflows and limit the risk of
lowering of the ground water table as required by the environmental condition of con-
sents. The machine can inject foam and/or bentonite to facilitate spoil handling under
all expected soil conditions. The EPB TBM provides fully-sealed support to the ground
while advancing, which provides protection for personnel from rock falls, full control of
the face support pressures and precise control of ground movements (Figure 4).
One TBM will be used, initially driving the southbound tunnel from the southern
portal. The TBM will be turned at the northern portal to complete the drive south from
the northbound tunnel. All construction materials will be conveyed to the southbound
portal.
The lining will be installed within the tail shield of the machine using a vacuum
erector that minimises installation risks to tunnel personnel. Two recesses are detailed
within each segment to help locate the shear cones forming part of the vacuum pad
arrangement. Primary grouting will be performed by the TBM tail skin injection, while
176 Design and Planning

Figure 3. Predicted geology

Table 1. Predicted geology units along main line tunnels

Stratigraphic
Name Geological Unit Symbol Description
Man-made Fill F Made ground varying in composition from
deposits household refuse to clay fill
Auckland Basalt Vb Strong to very strong basalt, columnar jointed
Volcanic with a highly vesicular top and bottom, platy
Field sub-horizontal flow parting joints and a rubble
base
Tauranga Undifferentiated A Typically comprising clays and silts with
Group Alluvium occasional organic layers. Strength varies
from firm to very stiff
Weathered Residual Soil ER Firm to very stiff silts and clays
East Coast Highly weathered EW Undifferentiated very stiff to hard silt and clay
Bays Formation to Moderately and dense to very dense sands
(ECBF) weathered ECBF
Un-weathered ECBF—Rock EUS1 Extremely weak, uncemented, grain locked,
ECBF Class 1 fine to medium grained sandstone
ECBF—Rock EUS2 Very weak, interbedded siltstone and fine to
Class 2 medium grained sandstone
ECBF—Rock EUS3 Weak, volcaniclastic, coarse grained sand-
Class 3 stone (Parnell Grit)

each segment will be detailed with a grout hole, through which secondary grouting of
the tunnel annulus can be done. A grouting socket will be cast into each segment but
the hole will be partial depth. If secondary grouting is required, the full depth will need
to be drilled out. The socket is located within one of the vacuum erector cone recesses.
The grouting ferrule will comprise durable non-ferrous material.

Shallow Cover and Great North Road

Special attention has been given to formulating a minimum risk tunneling method under
Great North Road (GNR) taking into account geotechnical conditions, EPB TBM capa-
bilities and the experience that will have been acquired on the project by that time. A
traffic management sequence has been developed that can maintain traffic flow on
GNR without traffic having to travel directly above the TBM in operation. An intensive
monitoring regime is planned to detect any unexpected increase in settlement.
The design has used NZTA’s experience in operating the existing central motor-
way to develop a tunnel and highway alignment that features economical merge and
diverge lengths within the GNR Interchange, with relatively shallow depth tunnels and
safe minimum portal depths. In combination with the EPB TBM capability and lining
design,a tunnel alignment design involving tunneling under GNR rather than using cut
and cover has been developed, substantially mitigating disruption to local traffic and the
 Tunnel Design for the Waterview Connection Project 177

Figure 4. Typical tunnel cross section

community during construction. The northern tunnel portal is on the west side of GNR
with a minimal length of cut and cover in which the northern ventilation building will be
located, simplifying the exhaust inlet structure and reducing the land requirement.
During the tender it was decided the easiest, safest and most economical way
to transfer the TBM from the completed first drive to the second drive was to turn the
machine at the northern portal. Whilst this operation will present a number of chal-
lenges, the advantages were seen to outweigh the disadvantages, notably:
■■ lack of space and access for heavy lift cranes to disassemble the TBM at the
northern portal
■■ difficulty of transporting large sections of the (disassembled) machine over
secondary roads from the northern to southern portal
■■ time and risk involved in disassembling and re-assembling the TBM
■■ Obayashi’s previous successful experience in turning large TBMs within tight
site constraints
■■ avoidance of disassembly/re-assembly

Cross-Passage Construction
There are sixteen mined cross-passages that are spaced less than the permitted maxi-
mum 150 m apart to allow for slight position adjustments and economically cater for
variable ring positions. The tunnel alignment was adjusted to minimise cross-passage
lengths as far as reasonably practical whilst providing the necessary space for the per-
manent mechanical and electrical (M&E) installations. The low point sump, situated in
a cross-passage in an enlarged cross-section, is close to the northern portal.
178 Design and Planning

At each cross-passage, special steel frame segments will be installed in the main-
line tunnels as part of the TBM lining construction to facilitate break-out and safely
commence cross-passage excavation. Before cross passage excavation works begin,
the ground at each cross-passage will be probed by core drilling through pre-installed
ports within the steel frame segments and, if required, the ground will be grouted to
strengthen the ground to improve stability and/or to reduce the water flow. Cross-
passages will be constructed by the sequential excavation method (SEM). Excavation
will use conventional excavation equipment with specialized attachments, depending
on the ground conditions found.
The cross-passages will be constructed by separate specialist activity work par-
ties, such as the excavation and temporary support, waterproofing, and concreting,
to use different skill types efficiently. Each work party will move to the next cross-
passage sequentially. For good quality control, workers will be trained by experienced
superintendents or specialists in the particular aspect of work. A daily review meeting
will be held to evaluate the excavation and support measures in use and to be used.
This will be detailed in the required excavation and support permit to tunnel sheet,
which includes observation of ground conditions of the excavation face, monitoring of
supports installed in cross-passages and segments in mainline tunnels, shotcrete test
results and ground evaluation and so forth. The daily review meeting will confirm the
support mechanism required for the next sequence of excavations and temporary sup-
port measures.

Herrenknecht Interface
To obtain the best outcome from the design and construction process, WCA instigated
close liaison procedures with Herrenknecht (HK), which included weekly video meet-
ings as well as regular face-to-face meetings. The proposed solutions were extensively
reviewed through the WCA home organizations. An outcome of these meetings was a
review of the tunnel driving philosophy which has led to using a separate culvert instal-
lation gantry rather than installing the culvert as part of the TBM activity. This effectively
de-links the TBM progress from the culvert and backfilling operation, thereby reducing
risks to the TBM advance rates whilst providing the additional benefit of simplifying the
TBM turn around at the north portal.
The TBM, while slightly larger than many, has many similar features of a normal
EPB TBM, including:
■■ The probe drill can be mounted on the erector (systematic probing is not
envisaged).
■■ Tool housings for interchangeable disc and ripper tools with access from the
rear of the cutterhead.
■■ An escape refuge with a dedicated air supply for the TBM crew plus spare
capacity.
■■ Multiple personnel and material locks to aid in hyperbaric interventions (if
required).
■■ TBM has a shortened first gantry to help re-launch it, which will use gantry one
only until the TBM has mined far enough to allow the full set of the remaining
TBM and the culvert gantry to be installed as the northern portal prohibits the
launch of the TBM in ‘full’ configuration.
■■ There are three TBM gantries and the separate culvert gantry giving an over-
all length of around 85 m.
■■ The culverts will be placed and backfilled about 150 m behind the rear of the
TBM gantries, and will be operated by a separate work party. The TBM will
 Tunnel Design for the Waterview Connection Project 179

have priority so placing the culverts is a support activity rather than the driver
of the whole sequence of the tunnelling process.
■■ The culvert gantry’s design will allow the tunnel vehicles supplying the TBM
to pass across the gantry/culvert placing operation at all times to minimize
disruption to the TBM process.
■■ The tunnel rings and culvert will be transported underground using specialist
multipurpose vehicles, which can carry a complete ring or two culvert sections.
■■ Samples from the portal excavations have been used for foam trials with dif-
ferent manufacturers’ products to determine the most appropriate foam to
condition the ground. This will give WCA a ‘base mix’ to start tunnelling with
that can be modified as the drive progresses to maximise efficiency and will
minimise wear.
■■ Spoil from the TBM will be transported using a continuous conveyer system
to the south portal and then to a noise shed where it will be loaded into trucks
for offsite disposal. Because of the restrictions placed on disposal and plac-
ing there will be great emphasis on the consistency (moisture content) of the
spoil to minimize placing and compaction issues at the disposal site. WCA
is investigating the drying (reducing the moisture content) of the spoil before
removing it from site.
■■ The noise shed will allow storage of 48 hours of production to allow maximum
drainage of the spoil and also allow 24-hour spoil removal operations.

CONCLUSION
The tunnel lining design has adopting contemporary state-of-the art methods to provide
an economical segmental lining design to suit expected geological conditions and local
manufacturing and construction capabilities.
Tunnelling is expected to start in mid-2014, with the Western Ring Route com-
pleted and opened by March 2017.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Support is acknowledged from the New Zealand Transport Authority (NZTA) and the
Well-Connected Alliance. Authors thank Derek Austin for contributing to this paper.