The ITA COSUF TSO Webinar on Refurbishments of Road Tunnels (18 November 2021) organised by Activity Group 4 (Tunnels Safety Officers) supported by the Dutch Knowledge Centre for Underground Construction and Inderground Space (COB) was visited by 72 attendees mainly from Europe and few from India and New Sealand. This webinar was ment as a teaser for the bi annual TSO Forum in 2022, where the main topic will be tunnel refurbishment. This TSO6 will be organised on June 9 and 10^th 2022 in Bruxelles. After a brief introduction by ITA COSUF Chairman Max Wietek the main programme started with a presentation by Silvester Heijdemann (Rijkswaterstaat) and Harry de Haan (Rijkswaterstaat) of the renovation of the Heinenoordtunnel in the Netherlands. Besides renewals of equipment, a new safety concept with a central escape gallery is created and during construction one tube is in operation most of the time which is a challenge.  A second presentation was provided by Program Director Richard Bormans of Arcadis who is assigned by the Flamish Road Authority to carry out the preparations for the total and integral renovation of the Vierarmentunnel in the Brussels ring road and of the Beverentunnel in the Antwerp ring road. In this assignment BIM models, tunnel safety documentation and renovation files are supplied for both the TERN and non-TERN road tunnels. 

Both presentations showed that to prepare a road tunnel renovation one should not only focus on a safe final situation, but also on the construction phase where part of the tunnel is in operation.

The presentations can be downloaded here.

Refurbishment of Heinenoordtunnel by Silverster Heijdemann and Harry de Haan 

Renovation of Road Tunnels - A Flanders Example by Richard Bormans