Hong Kong’s Central Kowloon Route Breaks Ground
Posted by Richard Poulter on Wednesday, February 14, 2018
More than 10 years after the initial preliminary designs were commissioned, the Central Kowloon Route (CKR) is finally starting construction on site. With all three tenders recently awarded in December 2017 and start dates of January 2018, the HK$42 billion project has become a reality.
Overview
The CKR is a 4.7km long, dual 3-lane trunk road, which includes a 3.9km long tunnel. A section of the tunnel will also be constructed under the seabed of Kowloon Bay, with viaducts to connect to existing interchanges at either end of the new route. The estimated completion date is 2025.
Works Started on Site
Enabling works for the tunnelling include the construction of a vertical access shaft, as well as ground investigation works and directional drilling, which started on site in December 2017. This section of the works is anticipated to be complete by summer 2019.
East Section - Tunnels Under the Sea
The 370m section of tunnel under Kowloon Bay will be constructed by temporarily reclaiming 3 hectares of land. A shorter (160m) underwater section at Ma Tau Kok is planned to be constructed using cut-and-cover. With the associated underpass and below-grade road, this section of the works alone is expected to require a workforce of 400 staff at its peak.
West Section - Mitigating the Impact
At Yau Ma Tei, a landscaped deck is proposed in addition to the viaducts to connect to the existing interchange. An existing flyover is planned to be partially reconstructed, with noise barrier and enclosure works also required to mitigate the impact on the local area.
Demand for experienced highway and tunnelling engineers, as well as construction managers, quantity surveyors and claims managers is set to rise exponentially as the project gets well and truly underway. Please get in touch if you’d like to hear more about the opportunities we currently have on this remarkable large-scale infrastructure project.
Richard Poulter
Recruitment Director, Hong Kong
I am responsible for the recruitment business in Hong Kong, Asia, and the Middle East. I was a civil engineer and project manager for 15 years before becoming a construction industry recruiter in 2004. I am based in the Hong Kong office and excel at placing professionals in engineering, project management, planning and HSEQ/risk.
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Email: richard@maximrecruitment.com