Hunter Water has created an 80m tunnel beneath the Newcastle Inner City Bypass using trenchless horizontal directional drilling as part of a $4.2 million upgrade to the sewer system between Windale and Gateshead.
Hunter Water’s Chief Operating Officer Darren Cleary said the tunnel was only possible because of the state of the art machinery.
“The technology means Hunter Waster could bore under six of the busiest traffic lanes in Newcastle without having any effect on the traffic passing overhead.
“In fact drivers wouldn’t have had any idea of the incredible engineering feat taking place immediately underneath them as they drove along the Newcastle Inner City Bypass.
“Only a few years ago a project of this size would have required multiple road closures, dozens of traffic controllers and huge inconvenience for tens of thousands of drivers. Today the entire drilling process can be done by remote control which greatly increases safety, accuracy and speed,” he said.
Construction on the $4.2 million project is set to continue until April 2014.
