Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, vol. LXVIII, Sept. 1910: The Bergen Hill Tunnels. Paper No. 1154Lavis, F.
History
Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, vol. LXVIII, Sept. 1910: The Bergen Hill Tunnels. Paper No. 1154
Lavis, F.
Civil engineering -- Periodicals; Railroad tunnels -- Design and construction
In designing the forms for all exposed surfaces in the tunnels, it was
the desire of the contractors to obtain directly from them a surface
which would be satisfactory to the engineers without further finishing
than the patching of minor defects. In this they were generally quite
successful, and excellent results were obtained, as shown in the view of
the finished tunnel, Fig. 2, Plate XXVII. The surface of the bench-walls
was obtained solely by spading the face with a flat spade as the work
progressed. No after treatment was resorted to, except for the few
sections where the forms became worn. The top of the bench-wall was
finished with a float about 2 or 3 hours after the concrete was placed.
When the work was well organized, a bench-wall was built at each end
each day, one day in the North Tunnel, and the following day in the
South. During the time sand-walls were being built, a sand-wall and
bench-wall were built on alternate days in each tunnel, care being taken
that when a bench-wall was being built in one tunnel, the sand-wall was
being built in the other, this being necessary in order to equalize the
work of the night gang and the conduit layers as well as the
transportation.
The conduit layers on the day shift, two or three men and a foreman,
required about 2 hours in the forenoon and 1 hour in the afternoon to
lay their portion of the conduits, and usually finished this work by 3
P.M. At other times during the shift they were utilized at those points
where rock packing was heaviest, and when the packing was brought in in
the large cars, as shown in Fig. 1, Plate XXVI, these men helped unload
it so that the track could be cleared as soon as possible. When
water-proofing was to be done, the number of men in this gang was
increased, so as to enable them to do that work also.
[Illustration: Plate XXVI.
Fig. 1: K 167. P.R.R. Tunnels, N. R. Div. Sect. K. (Bergen Hill
Tunnels.) View of form for circuit breaker chamber at Sta. 286, and
travelling gantry for placing concrete in arches, looking Easterly
from near Sta. 280+85, South Tunnel. Oct. 3, 08.
Fig. 2: K 166. P.R.R. Tunnels, N. R. Div. Sect. K. (Bergen Hill
Tunnels.) View of forms for storage chamber at Sta. 294+24, looking
Southward. Sept. 17, 08.
Fig. 3: K 163. P.R.R. Tunnels, N. R. Div. Sect. K. (Bergen Hill
Tunnels.) Tunnel lining. Rock packing over arches, South tunnel Sta.
???+?? end of completed section. May 19, 08.
Fig. 4: K 168. P.R.R. Tunnels, N. R. Div. Sect. K. (Bergen Hill
Tunnels.) Showing method of waterproofing in timbered tunnel section
at Weehawken end. Oct. 21, 08.]
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