LONG TUNNEL COMPLETED

Taranaki Daily News, 7 August 1930, Page 18

LONG TUNNEL COMPLETED

LINK IN SEWERAGE SCHEME CONTRACT MAKES GOOD PROGRESS CONSIDERABLE WORK STILL TO DO The piercing of the tunnel 1500 feet long between Eliot and Buller streets was completed yesterday morning. This is one of the works required in connect tion with the comprehensive sewerage scheme for New Plymouth. Under the supervision of the contractor, Mr. S. Staepoole, parties have been working from both ends of the tunnel. They poked a small hole through the last remaining barrier of earth on Tuesday evening. This was widened to the correct width yesterday. This work represents considerable progress towards the completion of the system. First a shaft 60 feet deep was sunk at the foot of Eliot Street, near the cliffs. Then a tunnel was driven 200 feet up Eliot Street to the intersection with the liquefaction chamber. Thence the drive was angled in order to. take it 1500 feet in a straight line to a point near the gates to the East End reserve at the bottom. of Buller Street. In the meantime another shaft, 45 feet deep, was put down in Hobson Street, above the line of the 1500 feet tunnel. From the foot of this shaft tunnellers have excavated 380 feet to the East Enl gates, while in the opposite direction they have been working towards the point at which the two se.'tnws of the Ion" tunnel from Eliot Street have now met. “They have been joined io a per lest centre,” said Mr. M. James, assistant borough engineer, to a Daily News reporter yesterday. Mr. James has had charge of the alignments. 11? added that° the contractor had described the tunnel as “as straight as a gun ban eh The contract was commenced on March 5 so that very good progress has been made during the five months that have elapsed." The work accomplished has included the sinking of two shafts, the driving of 2200 feet of tunnel and the laying of 380 feet of two-foot drain pipes between Hobson Street and the East End gates. The total length of tunnelling required under the contract is 4500 feet, so that half has been done already. On Monday the contractor will commence laying drain pipes two feet in diameter between Eliot and Hobson streets. The men will start from the Eliot Street end and work two shifts a day. After this undertaking is out of the way a shaft will be sunk 45 feet in Molesworth Street, near the foundry of Messrs. Rollo and Millar.- From this tunnels will be driven both ways, oi.e to meet that at Eliot Street and the other under Molesworth. Street to Kawau Street.

That will complete the work of the contractor so far as tunnelling is concerned. Afterwards he will have to lay concrete pipes varying from two to three feet in diameter and embed them in concrete, and tlieij. he will make the cut required for the outfall to the ,sea at the foot of Eliot Street. Present indications are that the remainder of the tunnelling will be completed by Christmas. The next stage towards the completion of the system will be the reticulation of the borough for a distance of 45 miles. None of this has been done yet but it is expected that tenders for the first section will b. called shortly. After the present contract is completed to the outfall the reticulated sections will be connected for operation with the liquefaction chamber.