Rail‐bound logistics in tunnelling – Challenging logistics for a 30 km long TBM drive.

During the early years of the 19th century, narrow‐gauge railways found their way into mines and tunnel projects. Due to economic reasons, these rail‐bound transport systems were successfully used for the transport of personnel, supplies and muck operations. While the worldwide transport logistics developed and changed continuously over the following century, there was limited demand within the tunnelling industry on innovation and improvement for these robust, durable and simple railways. Moreover, rubber‐tired transport systems were introduced to the market and replaced traditional rail equipment on many tunnelling projects. The MTS tunnel Drive 1, originally planned to be 13 km in length and now extended to 30 km, will become the longest single tunnel drive in the world, demonstrating the flexibility of a rail‐bound system. Since the start of the project, various suppliers and manufacturers for rail‐bound equipment and rail track systems have been involved in the development of innovative drive systems, under‐carriages and rail tracks. This article provides an overview of the design, implementation and lessons learned so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]