Preview

Author(s):	Khoo, Chee-Min; Ooi, Teik-Aun
Title:	Geotechnical challenges and innovations in urban underground construction - The Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit project
Abstract:	The Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (KVMRT) project involves the construction of an urban passenger transport system, i.e., Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, together with the existing urban rail network, will form the backbone of the public transport system in the Greater Kuala Lumpur/Klang Valley region in Malaysia. The first MRT line implemented is the 47 km Kajang Line, of which 9.5 km is underground tunnels with seven underground stations. Construction of the line began on 8 July 2011 and achieved the full line opening on 17 July 2017. The second MRT line-Putrajaya Line-began fully operations on 16 March 2023, stretches from Sungai Buloh to Serdang and ends at Putrajaya for a length of 57.7 km, of which 13.5 km is underground tunnels with 10 new underground stations. Like all other metro underground stations/tunnels designed as part of the urban city, the KVMRT underground construction faces challenges from a technical (engineering design and construction) as well as social (environmental and land related) point of view. Needless to say, underground construction in Klang Valley is intensified with the inherent geotechnical challenges presented by complex ground conditions ranging from hard granite, heterogeneous Kenny Hill formation and extreme karstic limestone with fully developed weathered profiles to soft recent deposits including alluvium and mine tailing that is under-consolidated in places due to past mining activities. The development of this large-scale infrastructure project has not only opened up tremendous works and new frontier for tunnelling and geotechnical engineering in Malaysia, but it also provided a wealth of information of unique geotechnical challenges/accomplishments as well as technology breakthrough and design innovation in underground engineering. This article discusses some aspects of geotechnical challenges and interesting lessons learnt as well as numerous innovations embedded into this highly complex urban underground construction project.
Source:	Geomechanics and Tunnelling 16 (2023), No. 3
Page/s:	243-262
Language of Publication:	English/German

I would like to buy the article

You can download this article for 25 € as a PDF file (4.02 MB).
The PDF file can be read, printed and saved.
Duplication and forwarding to third parties is not allowed.

Please enter your email address now to start the order process.
The link for the download will be sent to the email address stated after the
order process has been completed.

Your email address

I am an online subscriber

As an online subscriber of the journal "Geomechanics and Tunnelling" you can access this article via Wiley Online Library.

I would like to order "Geomechanics and Tunnelling"

This article has been published in the journal "Geomechanics and Tunnelling". If you would like to learn more about the journal, you can order a free sample copy or find out more information on our website.

Prices include VAT and postage. Prices for 2017/2018.
€ Prices apply to Germany only. Subject to alterations, errors excepted.