Rikke Faaborg, Communications Dept., Ørestad Development Corp.
"The Metro becomes visible in Ørestad: Above or under ground? In the center of Copenhagen the Metro train runs underground in tunnels. In Ørestad however, the train will run on elevated tracks through the country side. Here the Metro train is visible, not only at the stations, but you can actually see the train as it runs between stations."
"First Metro Station nearly excavated: At the Christianshavn Station the first of 24 Stations is nearly excavated. The excavation is done with a so-called 'Roadheader' digging its way through the Copenhagen chalk and flint. The 'Roadheader' pulverizes the material, making it easy for the excavators to remove it."
"On the island of Amager we are building two lines for the Metro. One which will take the Metro train through Ørestad and one which will take the Metro train to Lergravsparken and eventually on to the Copenhagen Airport. Below the Stadsgraven we are merging the two lines into one, taking the Metro train to Kongens Nytorv and on to Frederiksberg and Vanløse.
The merging point of the Metro reminds you of a giant dripstone cave. It holds a constant temperature of 5-8 Celsius. This is where you find the deepest point of the Metro. We are 42 meters below ground in order to merge the two lines.
The shape and size of the room of the merger is larger than what can be drilled by the Tunnel Boring Machine. Therefore the room has been build by hand using the Austrian tunneling technique NATM (New Austrian Tunneling Method).
Click the (link) and see the under ground cave of the merger. Enjoy the
sight - soon it will be covered by a watertight membrane and packed in
concrete."
In Copenhagen the day was marked by the blessing of the first finished part of the Metro tunnel, going from Islands Brygge to Stadsgraven (572 metres).
The blessing was carried out by a Catholic as well as a Protestant priest."
"'Liva' - one of the two Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM), has started her second journey through the Copenhagen under ground. This time the trip will take her from Havnegade to Lergravsparken on the island of Amager. First breakthrough will be at the Christianshavn Station.
'Liva' started her journey in the middle of December and has drilled 35 metres under the harbour so far. She has already started her ascent towards the Christianshavn Station. The length of the tunnel between Havnegade and Christianshavn will be 446 metres.
3 TBM crews of each 15 men are working the Tunnel Boring Machine. They make sure that the excavated material is loaded onto the working train when 'Liva' has bored. They also fit the Tunnel elements each weighing 3 tons."
At "Sjaeleboderne" we are constructing a tunnel shaft. Because of the limited space in "Sjaeleboderne" the tunnel shaft has an elliptical shape.
At the bottom of the shaft - 33 metres down - we are constructing a subterranean "cave" in which the metro train will be able to change tracks. The two tracks, which run in two parallel tunnels, will be bound together by a "cross-over". The excavation of the "cave" cannot be done by the Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). Therefore we use the Austrian NATM-technique (New Austrian Tunnelling Method). This technique was also used at "Havnegade" and "Stadsgraven". It is a manual construction method, using a Roadheader (mechanical excavator fitted with a rotary cutter). We are 10 days ahead of schedule, so work is progressing well.
Control and Maintenance Center, Ørestad
The Metro lives in Ørestad: In the southern part of Ørestad, the home of the Metro is taking shape. At the terminus on Western Amager the new Control and Maintenance Centre has been built. From here the Metro trains are controlled when in operation. But it is also here that the Metro trains are cleaned, maintained and parked when not in use. A number of buildings and a net of tracks is required. The Centre covers an area of 16 acres, and the buildings cover 12.000 m2.
Testing the Copenhagen Metro trains:
The Italian train producer Ansaldo is testing the first prototype of the Copenhagen Metro train. Among other things the engine, the brakes and the door functions are tested. The doors of the Metro train have to open at the same time as the glass doors on the stations. To test this, Ansaldo has built a station mock-up at which the train can stop.
The test runs are taking place in Napoli, where the electric parts of the Metro train are produced. Later testing will take place in Copenhagen at the Control - and Mainteance Center on Western Amager.
Tracks taking the Tunnel Boring Machines to the opposite end of the station
The pictures are taken by photographer Ole Ziegler.
Christianshavn gets ready for the Tunnel Boring Machine "Liva":
Within the next two weeks the TBM "Liva" will break through at Christianshavn station. This is going to be the first station break through in the history of the Copenhagen Metro Project.
To get ready for the arrival of "Liva" and later the other TBM "Betty", Christianshavn station is finishing the base slap of the station room. Casting of the base slap takes place in two turns. First casting lasted 24 hours and used a total of 1,700 tonnes of concrete. Second casting lasted 48 hours and used a total of 3,600 tonnes of concrete. During the 48 hours, 528 concrete trucks passed through the work site to unload.
"Picture 1" is taken from the tower crane at Christianshavn Station and gives a nice view over the night casting. At "picture 2" you can see the tracks taking the Tunnel Boring Machines to the opposite end of the station so they can continue their journey to Amagerbro station.
On Thursday March 18 at 10.00 A.M. "Liva" broke through to the Christianshavn Station. This was the first Station breakthrough in the history of the Copenhagen Metro project. "Liva" - 80 metres long and weighing 700 tonnes - is on her second journey through the Copenhagen underground, from the Havnegade tunnel shaft in the City to Lergravsparken Station on the island of Amager -- a journey of 3,418 metres in total. Arrival at Christianshavn Station means completion of 460 metres of this journey. "Betty" - the other TBM - has bored 276 metres and is expected to arrive at Christianshavn Station at the end of April.
Removing the bored chalk on barges
Each TBM is manned by 3 crews each numbering 15 men. Their job is to put together the tunnelrings each weighing 18 tonnes and to load the bored chalk onto the working trains which takes the chalk back to Havnegade from where the material is removed on barges. The chalk is used as fill up at Kastrup peninsula close to Copenhagen Airport and at the artificial island which forms part of the fixed link between Denmark and Sweden. During 1998 the TBM's bored approximately 10,000 m3 chalk out of the Copenhagen underground.
The pictures are taken by photographer Ole Ziegler.
TBM Betty breaks through at Christianhavn station
On April 15 the TBM Betty broke through to Christianshavn Station. This marked the first Station breakthrough for Betty. The TBM Betty is following the other TBM Liva which - according to schedule - is on her way to the Stadsgraven tunnel shaft.
Betty started her journey at Havnegade tunnel shaft and will end just after the Lergravsparken Station on Amager. This journey totals 3,418 metres. Arrival at Christianhavn Station means completion of 446 metres of this journey.
See the breakthrough at a depth of 25 metres.
Buildings "float" in the air during construction of Metro Station.
On Frederiksberg, the Metro station is situated between the Frederiksberg Shopping Center and the old listed station buildings of DSB (Danish State Railways). This leaves not much room for construction of the Metro Station, and in order to be able to excavate the Station room, it is neccessary to dig under the foundation of the old buildings. Before the start of construction it was discussed how best to preserve the buildings. One suggestion was to roll the buildings out of harm's way during construction and then move them back later when the Metro Station is completed. However, Skanska Jensen developed a technical solution which made it possible to keep the buildings in place during excavation and construction of the Metro Station. The solution uses an ingenious system of anchors and levers. This way the buildings "float" in mid-air during excavation and construction.
This view shows the narrow workspace available. The listed station buildings on Frederiksberg are the oldest of the characteristic Danish designed railway stations still in existence. They were built by Vilhelm Wolf in 1864. Frederiksberg station was one of the first stations on the line between Copenhagen and Roskilde.
Photos by Søren Hytting; used with permission.
On May 20 at 3.30 PM, the TBM "Liva" broke through at Stadsgraven tunnel shaft. It happened at a depth of 36 metres and with a boring speed of 5 mm per minute. This marks the second time that "Liva" visits Stadsgraven. First time was during her "virgin" journey from Islands Brygge. This breakthrough gives free passage from Havnegade to Islands Brygge (1,340 metres). "Liva" will continue her journey towards Strandlodsvej stopping at Amagerf¾lledvej tunnel shaft, Amagerbro Station, Spaniensgade tunnel shaft and Lergravsparken Station.
On Thursday May 27th 1999 at 08:00 PM the first Metro train prototype arrived in Denmark. It crossed the border at Rødby Havn where the customs police greeted the 52 ton train as it left the ferry boat from Germany loaded on 3 flatbed trucks.
The train started its journey from the Breda factories in Italy on May 21st. With a speed of 40 kilometres an hour and with a police escort the 3 flatbed trucks moved slowly over the Alps on their way to Denmark. The train is now at the Control and Maintenance Center in Ørestad, ready to start test runs. It is expected that the first test runs will commence in 2 weeks time.
Train being unloaded in Ørestad
The picture from the Farøbridge is taken by photographer Per Rasmussen, and the picture in Ørestad by photographer Søren Hytting.
The final brigde deck on the elevated part of the Metro has been cast. This means that the 2,525 metres of elevated Metro line in Ørestad has been completed. Separated by an embankment, the elevated Metro line runs 1,775 metres through Ørestad City and 750 metres through the University neighbourhood. A total of 26,000 cubic metres of concrete has been used. This equals 3,250 fully loaded concrete trucks. The Metro line wind its way through the University neighbourhood before diving into the tunnels at Islands Brygge Station.
The Vestamager Station in the southern part of Ørestad is the one of the 6 elevated stations closest to completion. The station stands as a light steel construction in the landscape. At the moment tests on the fisnish of the station will be carried out. This includes the glass roof, granite coverings and the banisters of the almost completed stairways leading up to the platforms. The elevated stations has been designed by PLH Architects. Vestamager Station is the terminus station of the Metro. Photo by Teit Hornbak.
Station with view of local landscape
Photo by Rikke Faaborg.
TBM's "Liva" and "Betty" on a night out in Copenhagen.
"Liva" and "Betty" are two big and heavy ladies. Last Monday night the transport of the TBM's started from the workshop on Refshalevej to Havnegade in the center of Copenhagen. the TBM's, each 80 metres long and each weighing in at 1,200 tons, are split in 14 parts - a head, a shield in 3 parts and 10 back-up wagons. On large trucks and with an average speed of 12-15 kilometres/hour they are transported through Copenhagen at night and under police escort.
The transports are so heavy and bulky that it is not possible to take the direct route through the narrow streets of the City Center.
Upon arrival at Havnegade they are greeted by the largest cranes in Denmark - "Basse" and "Big Mama"- who are on hand to lift the various parts down the tunnel shaft. As soon as the TBM's are in place and put back together they will start their final journey through the under ground of Copenhagen towards Frederiksberg. (January 29, 2000)
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