The Rheinufer Tunnel in Dusseldorf
Between 1990 and 1993, the Rheinufer Tunnel (tunnel on the banks of the River Rhine) was built to provide the people of Düsseldorf with traffic free access to the banks of the river Rhine and traffic calming for the neighbouring residential areas. The tunnel, which was built in a joint venture, relocates the street „Rheinuferstraße“ underground for a length of 1,928 m. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on March 15, 1990 and the road was opened to traffic in the presence of a large proportion of the population on December 15, 1993.
The south portal is situated at Lahnweg, in the district Unterbilk near Rheinturm (Rhine tower) and Landtag (state parliament). The north portal is in the historic centre south of Oberkassel Bridge. To take into account cramped conditions at the river Rhine, the tunnel had to be executed on two levels in the area of the historic centre, which required a 17 m deep excavation. First, the upper tunnel was completed protected by diaphragm walls and then the lower tube was carried out using the conventional (mining) technique with compressed air. To avoid building settlements, extensive underpinnings of the neighbouring buildings were required by means of high-pressure grouting.
The building on top of the south portal, the Düsseldorf Stadttor - a 19 floor tower block and office of the state premier of North Rhine Westphalia is considered to be a technical highlight within this Düsseldorf structure of the century.
Further details:
- 600,000 m³ excavated earth
- 235,000 m³ concrete
- 22,000 t reinforcing steel
- 55,000 cars / day