The Züblin and Max Bögl joint venture made the breakthrough on the Stuttgart Airport tunnel last week.
Deutsche Bahn’s Stuttgart 21, which is overhauling and reconfiguring the city’s rail system, includes the construction of eight twin-bore tunnels: Bad Cannstatt Tunnel; Feuerbach Tunnel; Airport tunnel; Filder Tunnel; Obertürkheim Tunnel; S-Bahn tunnel between the Mittnachtstrasse stop and the S-Bahn station Hauptbahnhof; Rosenstein S-Bahn tunnel and Untertürkheimer Curve Tunnel.
Tunnel boring started in December 2013.
At a celebration attended by politicians and officials from Deutsche Bahn (DB), the European Commission and Stuttgart Airport, DB head of infrastructure Berthold Huber acknowledged the project’s achievements.
PHOTO: Deutsche Bahn AG / Arnim Kilgus
“Fifty-six kilometres of tunnel, built in the middle of the big city, under the trade fair, in the middle of an airport site, under the Neckar [river], under the television tower – the challenges were numerous,” he said.
Stuttgart mayor Dr Frank Nopper said the construction of the eight tunnels was a huge challenge because of Stuttgart’s basin location and the presence of mineral water.
