Source: www.arabnews.com
Work on the tunnel for the first line of the Riyadh Metro is expected to start after two months with the arrival of the spare parts of the tunnel boring machine (TBM) imported from Germany.
“The spare parts for the TBM have arrived. Assembling the TBM takes two months,” said a source whose company works for the Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA).
He made the statement on the heels of complaints from city residents that the $22.5 billion metro project had caused inconveniences to motorists, passengers and businessmen whose shops had lost customers.
He said that a manhole of about 30 meters deep with a diameter of 10 meters or more has been dug at the King Abdulaziz Road.
“From the bottom of the manhole, work on the tunnel will be started. As far as I know, this is the biggest metro project in the world,” he said.
Earlier, Ibrahim A. Al-Hammad, a member of the board of directors of the Saudi Council of Engineers (SCE), said that the project will provide a “safe, efficient and fast” means of public transport. More info