Brenner Base Tunnel

Tyrol: complex logistics behind the mega project

BBT board member Martin Gradnitzer, Porr board member Jürgen Raschendorfer, regional transport councillor René Zumtobel and RCG board member Christoph Grasl (from left) at the site inspection.

(Bild: ÖBB/Sailerbrothers)

Around 54,000 special rings weighing 530,000 tons are being delivered for the Brenner Base Tunnel. These and other interesting figures were recently presented during a site inspection.

With a length of around 64 kilometers, the Brenner Base Tunnel will be the longest underground rail link in the world once it is completed. The "H53 Pfons-Brenner" construction lot is the largest project section on the Tyrolean side. Work has been underway there since the beginning of May 2023.

Since September last year, the two tunnel boring machines "Wilma" and "Olga" have each been working their way around 7.6 kilometers from Steinach northwards through the mountain.

The dimensions of the Brenner Base Tunnel and the logistics are almost incomprehensible.

Verkehrslandesrat René Zumtobel

185 of 230 kilometers excavated
"The dimensions of the Brenner Base Tunnel and the logistics are almost incomprehensible," enthused Transport Minister René Zumtobel during a recent site inspection. And rightly so, because the current data on the mega-project is impressive. Of a total of 230 kilometers of tunnel system, 185 have been excavated.

And "Wilma" and "Olga" are also installing the inner shell of the tunnel as part of the drilling work. This consists of so-called segment rings. Each ring consists of six elements and a base stone.

The delivery of the rings is a complex logistical process. They have to work like clockwork.

Jürgen Raschendorfer, COO von Porr

Delivery by rail saves 45,000 trucks
They are manufactured 365 kilometers away in Sengenthal, Germany, by the Max Bögl Group. All 54,000 segment rings together weigh an impressive 530,000 tons. In addition, there are 40,000 tons of pearl gravel. The material is of course delivered by rail in a climate-friendly way. "Rail transport saves us 45,000 truck journeys in the region," calculates Christoph Grasl, CEO of the Rail Cargo Group.

Gantry cranes for unloading
The connecting track for deliveries was built back in 2016. It branches off to the south of Steinach station and consists of three sidings - two with a length of 100 meters each and one with a length of 180 meters. The segment rings are unloaded using gantry cranes. They are transported to the drilling machines on a dedicated heavy-duty truck and a train.

"The delivery of the rings is a complex logistical process. They have to work like clockwork," says Jürgen Raschendorfer, Porr's COO.