Not only for Linz commuters it is currently the biggest annoyance of the summer: the closure of the Mona Lisa tunnel. The “crown” was for a local inspection at the construction site, where work is currently in full swing so that the underground connection can be opened to traffic again as planned for the start of school.
The 775 meter long tunnel has been closed since June 19. Since then, motorists commuting to Linz from the south and vice versa have needed good nerves. Because the alternative routes – via the A…1, but above all via Ebelsberg and Wiener Straße – are usually heavily overloaded at peak times. “However, this has improved significantly since the start of the holidays,” says Peter Ilchmann, Director of Building Management and Civil Engineering at the Linz Municipal Authority. “After 20 years, the technology is outdated.” The general renovation could no longer have been postponed. The first plans for this had already begun three years ago. “After 20 years, the technology is outdated, there are almost no more spare parts, and the service contracts have also expired,” explains project manager Christian Ganhör at the “Krone” local inspection on Friday morning. 40 men toil in two shifts Where, otherwise, around 23,000 (up to 27,000 at peak times) cars roar through every day, there are now only a few construction site vehicles on the road. 40 men work in two shifts to bring the underground connection, which runs under the groundwater at its lowest point – which is why the water has to be pumped up ten meters via two 100 cubic meter catchment basins – to the latest state of the art. “We’ll be ready on time” Ilchmann: “First a 3D laser scan was made. Then we completely gutted the tunnel and dismantled it down to the level of the shell.” What is currently happening? The electromechanical equipment (ventilation, emergency call system) will be renewed, as will the fire-fighting system operated with high-pressure water mist or the lights; 90 kilometers of cable are laid. And because it can be washed up in one go, Strabag will re-asphalt the roadway to Lunzerstraße over an area of 8,000 square meters. The most important thing: “We’ll be done on time on September 8th,” says Ilchmann.
source site-12