International Seminar Tunnels-World Road Association

Santiago (Chile), 17-19 October 2012

This International Seminar « Long Road Tunnels: challenges for design, construction and operations » was jointly organized by the PIARC National Committee of Chile, i.e. Asociación Chilena de Carreteras y Transporte - ACCT, Chile's National Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space (CTES), the Chilean Ministry of Public Works, division of concessions and public works coordination - MPO-CCOP and Technical Committee TC 3.3 « Road Tunnels Operations » of the World Road Association.

Seminar Program (English / Spanish)

What motivated the international seminar was the commencement of planning for several projects involving long tunnels of great importance at the local, national and regional level and the interest of the local authorities in the exchange of knowledge and experiences regarding the operational aspects for urban long tunnels. Bi-national long tunnel projects across the Andes mountains to connect Argentina and Chile were one of the key interests of the many of the regional participants of the Seminar.

The seminar's opening session was addressed by Mr Ignacio del Rey, Chair of PIARC Technical Committee 3.3 on Road Tunnels Operations, and Mr Laurence Golborne, Minister of Public Works of Chile, which was followed by the inauguration of the Technological Exhibition.

During three days, ten sessions guided the 200 participants through very different subjects. After the first and introductory session, which presented the motivating challenges of the Seminar, detailed solutions and experience for different tunnel typologies (urban tunnels and long tunnels) were presented in sessions II and III.

From this general approach, the following sessions put the focus on the specific topics related to the core issueof the seminar: bi-national tunnels, with case studies and considerations on the strategic issues to be considered when planning such kinds of infrastructure; regulations, which allowed the audience to perceive different approaches to the topic in Chile, Brazil and Europe; new technologies, where design fire criteria or lighting efficiency were presented and, last but not least, ventilation and technological systems.

The second day ended with a specific session on concessions during which national (Costanera Norte and Americo Vespucio) and international case studies were presented.

The third day gave the audience the opportunity to collect experiences on important projects all around the world which were presented in a double session focused on the topic of challenges in tunnel construction. The seminar concluded with the Master Class on the topic of "Modern tunnel planning for roads of the future" which showed the importance of considering operational aspects from the beginning of the planning stages and the challenges of the construction and operation of long road tunnels.

The technical visit, organized on the last day, enabled the participants not only to view the control rooms of San Cristobal and Costanera Norte city tunnels under operation but also to exchange knowledge and experience with the operator's staff.

International Seminar Program on Long Road Tunnels - 17-19 october 2012 "Challenges for Design Construction and Operation"
First day of the Seminar (17 October)
Hour	Conferences
08:00 08:20	Registration
08:20 09:00	Opening Ceremony
	Introduction: Mr. Mario FERNÁNDEZ, Director of Highways MOP and PIARC First Delegate of Chile Opening session
08:20 08:40 08:40 09:00	Presentation of the Association (Spanish) Mr. Ignacio DEL REY, President of PIARC TC 3.3, ETSII / UPM-CEMIM (Spain) - Mr. Laurence GOLBORNE, Minister of Public Works of Chile
	Authorities : - Mr. Fernando AGÜERO, President Association of Engineers of Chile AG - Mr. Emilio PELLEGRINI, Public Works Concessions Coordinator (MOP) - Mr. Fabian GONZALEZ, Chairman of PIARC TC 3.3 Chile "Operation of Road Tunnels" - Mr. Alexandre GOMES, Chairman of Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space (CTES Chile) - Mr. Miguel ROPERT, President, Chilean Association of Roads and Transportation (ACCT, PIARC-Chile) - Mr. Julio ORTIZ - Mr. Juan MARCET, President of PIARC Argentina TC 3.3 PIARC and Spanish-speaking Secretary - Mr. Oliver VION, Executive Director, International Association of Tunnel Construction (AITES/ITA)
09:00 10:30	Session I - The challenge of "Long Tunnels Chair: Mr. Andres LAGOS, Chief of Project Development and Bids Division, Concessions (Chile) Co-Chair: Mr. Rafael LOPEZ-GUARGA, Member of the PIARC TC 3.3, Ministry of Development (Spain)
	"Vespucio Project" (Spanish) Mr. Emilio PELLEGRINI, Public Works Concessions Coordinator (MOP)
	"The PIARC Technical Committee Operation Of Road Tunnels" (Spanish) Mr. Pierre SCHMITZ, PIARC TC3.3 Vice-President, Ministry of the Brussels Region (Belgium)
	"Management And Administration Of Bi National Tunnels" (English) Mr. Martin KNIGHTS, Former President of the ITA and present Director of Tunnels of Halcrow - CH2M Hill, Co.
	"Agua Negra Project Chile" (Spanish) "Agua Negra Project Argentina" (Spanish) Mr. Sergio GAHONA, Intendant of the Coquimbo Region and M. José Luis GIOJA, Governor of San Juan Province (Argentina)
10:30 11:00	Opening of the Technology Exhibition
11:00 12:30	Session II - Operation of Urban Tunnels Chair: M. Andrés LAGOS, Chief of the Project Development and Bids Division - Concessions Co-Chair: M. Bernard FALCONNAT, Coordinator of WG5 "Underground urban road networks", EGIS Tunnels (France).
	"A Mega project: "Tunnel A86 Duplex: A Private Initiative" Mr. Antoine ARLET, Director of Studies, VINCI Construction (France)
	"Maintenance, Operation and Safety Management of Urban Road Tunnel in Canada" Mr. Alexandre DEBS, Chief of Center for Integrated Traffic Management (Canada-Quebec).
	"Strategies for Design and Construction of Long Tunnels" Mr. Johann GOLSER, Group President Geoconsult (Austria)
	Questions and Answers
12:30 14:30	Lunch
14:30 16:00	Session III - Exploitation of Longs Tunnels Chair: Mr. Didier LACROIX, CETU (France) Co-Chair: Mr. Juan MARCET, Director, School of Mountain Road Engineering, National University of San Juan (Argentina)
	"Optimization of Operation and Maintenance Activities and Costs for Road Tunnels based on Experiencence" (Spanish) Mr. Jørgen, HOLST, Cowi A/S (Denmark)
	"Exploitation and management of Safety in Long Tunnels" (Spanish) Mr. Rafael LOPEZ-GUARGA, Spanish Member of the PIARC TC 3.3, Ministry of Development (Spain)
	"Agua Negra Tunnel" (Spanish) Mr. Edgardo Héctor GUERCI, Director of the Provincial Road of San Juan (Argentina)
	Questions and Answers
16:00 16:30	Coffee
16:30 18:00	Session IV - Binational Tunnels Chair: Mr. Rafael LOPEZ-GUARGA, Member of the PIARC TC 3.3, Ministry of Development (Spain) Co-Chair: Mr. José Miguel ORTEGA, Coordinator Chile PIARC Committees, National Roads Administration (Chile)
	"Binational tunnels - Strategic issues" Mr. Bernard FALCONNAT, PIARC Tunnels Committee - Leader of WG 5: Underground Urban Roads Networks, EGIS Tunnels (France)
	"Improving the safety of the French-Italian Tende Tunnel: from Operational Measures to a Second Tube" Mr. Didier LACROIX, CETU (France), et M. Antonio VALENTE, ANAS (Italy)
	"Recent experiencies on Tunnel Design and Construction in the centran and meridian Andes" (Spanish) E. CHAVEZ, J.M. GALERA, C. IBARRA, C. QUIROGA, S. VEYRAT. Subterra Engineering Co.
	Questions and Answers
Second day of the Seminar (18 october)
Hour	Conferences
09:00 10:45	Session V - Road Safety in Tunnels. Regulations Chairs Mr. German MILLAN, Director of Chilean Association of Highway and Transportation (ACCT Chile) Co-Chair: Mr. Alexandre DEBS, Chief of Center for Integrated Traffic Management (Canada-Quebec)
	"Road safety Challenges in the European Directive: practical examples (for long tunnels)" (Spanish) Mr. Pierre SCHMITZ, PIARC TC3.3 Vice-President, Ministry of the Brussels Region (Belgium)
	"Fire Safety in Tunnels, design cycle" (Spanish) Mr. Miguel BUSTAMANTE, Head of the Fire Safety Engineering Section. Structures and Materials Testing Laboratory, (IDIEM),University of Chile
	"Performance-based assessment of road tunnel safety" Mr. Bernhard KOHL, leader of PIARC TC 3.3 Working Group on "Feedback from experience". ILF Consulting Engineers (Austria)
	"Standarization of Tunnel Safety Systems in Brazil" (Spanish) Mr. AEP BROWN, Risiko Co. - Head, Special Committee for Technical Regulations, ABNT- Brazilian Association for Technical Regulations, São Paulo (Brasil)
	Questions and Answers
10:45 11:15	Coffee
11:15 13:00	Session VI - New Technologies for the operation of Tunnels Chair: Mr. Ignacio DEL REY, President of PIARC TC 3.3, ETSIIUPM - CEMIM (Spain) Co-Chair: M. Fabian GONZALEZ, Chairman of Operational Tunnels Committee, PIARC ACCT (Chile)
	"New technologies for tunnel lighting" (Spanish) Mr. Javier BORJA, IDOM (Spain)
	"Intelligent Tunnel Lighting Control for substantial Energy Saving" (Spanish) Mr. Pierre LONGTIN, Hemera Technologies (Canada - Quebec)
	"Design criteria and Fire Protection Requirements for rural tunnels" Mr. Harald BUVIK, Senior Principal Engineer, National Road Administration (Norway)
	Questions and Answers
13:00 14:30	Lunch
14:30 16:00	Session VII - Ventilation and Technological Systems Chair: Mr. Les FIELDING, Leader of WG on "Fire Safety"- London Bridge Associates (UK) Co-Chair: Mr. Miguel BUSTAMANTE, Head of the Fire Safety Engineering Section. Structures and Materials Testing Laboratory, (IDIEM), University of Chile
	"The ventilation and security in long road Transalpine Tunnels" Mr. Uwe DROST, PhD., MSc. ETHL. Lombardi Engineering, Ltd. Switzerland
	"Energy Efficiency. Improvement Opportunities in Tunnels" Mr. Christian Alejandro FUENTES, Head of Construction Division, IDIEM University of Chile
	"Modelling tools for fire safety design ventilation" Mr. Romano BORCHELLINI, Professor at the Polytechnic of Torino (Italy)
	Questions and Answers
16:00 16:30	Coffee
16:30 18:30	Session VIII - Concessions Chair: M. Andres LAGOS, Chief of Project Development and Bids Division, Concessions (Chile) Co-Chair: M. José SÁNCHEZ, Project Manager, Road Concessions Coordination of the Public Works Ministry (Chile)
	"Overview of the Américo Vespucio Project" (Spanish) Mr. Rodrigo GARIN, Proyect Manager Concessions Coordination of the Public Works Ministry (Chile)
	"Operation in Costanera Norte" (Spanish) Mr. Juan KUSTER, Technical and Construction Manager Costanera Norte Concession (Chile)
	"Underground ring road in Basel, Construction methods in high traffic areas" (anglais) Mr. Stefan MUETZENBERG, PhD, ETHZ, M. Hermann KAESER, MSc.m. Civil Engineer, Gruner Ltd. Basel (Switzerland)
	"Project Lyon - Turin, Binational tunnel 50 km long" Mr. Pascal Guedon, Chief of Tunnels, ARCADIS, and M. Jorrit Nieuwenhius, ARCADIS
	Questions and Answers
Third day of the Seminar (19 october)
Hour	Conferences
08:30 10:30	Session IX - Challenges in Tunnel Construction (Part 1) Chair: Mr. Alexandre GOMES, Chairman of Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space (CTES-Chile), Geoconsult Latinoamérica Co-Chair: Mr. Juan Humberto CRUZ, Vice-president Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space of Chile, (CTES Chile), METRO of Santiago
	"Long Tunnels as an Environmental Solution" (Spanish) Mr. Hector SALAZAR, President of ACTOS (Colombian Association of Tunnels and Underground Works)
	"The Koralm tunnel in Austria" Mr. Gerhard HARER, Project Manager, Federal Railway (Austria)
	"Norwegian Philosophy of Tunnels Construction" (Spanish) Mr. Ola KVAMMEN, SKAVA Consulting (Norway)
	"Innovation in the conventional method (drilling and blasting) that make it competitive with TBMs" Mr. Pedro HUERTA, National University of Córdoba, University of San Juan, ROWA (Switzerland)
	Questions and Answers
10:30 11:00	Coffee
11:00 13:00	Session X - Challenges in Tunnel Construction (Part 2) Chair: Mr. Hartmut CLAUSSEN, Chairman of Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space (CTES Chile), MEYCO Underground Construction, Southamerica Co-Chair: Mr. Giorgio PIAGGIO, Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space of Chile, (CTES Chile), SKAVA Consulting
	"The St. Gotthard Tunnel: The Technical Direction Experience" (Spanish) Mr. Juan CARRERAS, PhD, Civil Engineer; M. Peter KIRCHHOFER, Gruner AG. Basel (Switzerland)
	"Transalpine Tunnels, Logistics, a critical aspect in the construction of long tunnels" Mr. Matias NEUENSCHWANDER, MSc. ETHZ, Lombardi Engineering, Ltd. (Switzerland)
	"Security, Ventilation and Climate in Road and Rail Long Tunnels" Mr. Bernd HAGENAH, PhD, Civil Engineer, Gruner AG, Basel (Switzerland)
	"Construction of long road tunnels in Norway, including the Lærdalstunnel" Mr. Eivind GROV, Chief Scientist Professor, SINTEF-SKAVA-NTNU (Norway)
	"TBMs Technology for different geology" (Spanish) Mr. Michael Weinhold, Herrenknecht Chile Ltd.
	Questions and Answers
13:00 13:30	Closing - Master Class
	"Modern Tunnel Planning for Roads of the Future" Mr. Jørgen HOLST, Senior Project Manager / Tunneling Chief Specialist. COWI A/S. (Denmark) Preside in the Headboard: - Chairman of PIARC TC 3.3 "Operation of Road Tunnels", Mr. Ignacio DEL REY - Director of Road Administration, MOP, and PIARC First Delegate of Chile, Mr. Mario FERNÁNDEZ - Chairman of PIARC TC 3.3 Chile "Operation of Road Tunnels", Mr. Fabian GONZALEZ - Chairman of Committee on Tunnels and Underground Space (CTES-Chile), Mr. Alexandre GOMES - President, Chilean Association of Roads and Transportation (ACCT, PIARC-Chile), Mr. Miguel ROPERT
15:00 18:00	TECHNICAL VISITS - System of Urban Road Concessions in Santiago - Costanera Norte Concession, San Cristóbal Tunnel and Américo Vespucio Highway.

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International Seminar on Long Road Tunnels

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