HAVANA'S NEW TUNNEL
[GENTE Magazine, Vol. 1, Havana, January 5, 1958, No. 1, American Edition]
Page 66-A
PHOTO CAPTION - Havana's Harbuor [Harbor] Tunnel: a passageway to prosperity.
HAVANA'S NEW TUNNEL TWO CITIES CONNECTS
HAVANA'S expansion toward the East, which had been stopped to this day
by the natural barrier of massive rocks protecting the entrance to its
harbour [harbor], had been possible by a modern Tunnel, now finished
according to President Batista's desires, which cross under Havana's
Bay, connecting the Old City of Spanish colonial narrow streets with
the vast extension of land on the opposite shore wich [which] gently
rising from sea level, reach up to 60 m. of altitude approximately.
This land, until now unexploited, will develop into a new city called
"Eastern Havana", beautiful, modern and planned according to the latest
conception of town planning and landscaping: full of green open spaces,
wide streets and magnificent avenues.
One of the most difficult problems solved in this work was the
harmonious orthogonal encounder [encounter] of two heavy trafficts
[traffic] that could eventually reach their highest peaks
simultaneously and, at the same time, insure their even circulation.
This problem was rendered even more difficult due to the fact that the
areas available for this purpose was limited, since it had been
specifically stipulated in the contract that the perspective view from
the
Page 66-B
PHOTO CAPTION - Main body of "Old Havana" is now connected to florious "East Havana" thanks to new Tunnel.
PHOTO CAPTION - All historical monuments remains untouched.
actual Presidential Palace to the Bay was not to be obstructed, all
historical monuments in t his section were to be respected and the
luxurious private residences surrounding the park where the Tunnel
entrance necessarily had to be situated, were also remain
untouched. All this and the water level being near the surface of
said area, were elements to be considered in order o find the right
solution.
So, a traffic circulation system at different levels, with a pretty clover-like design, called the "Orchid", was designed.
Furthermore, in order to avoid traffic bottlenecks, the toll collecting
system has been installed on the East side of the way, where the
Page 66-C
PHOTO CAPTION - The beautiful "Maximo Gomez Park" is the background of Old Havana's lanes to the tunnel.
PHOTO CAPTION - This foto [photo] shows machines and men working hard in the Main bate of the Tunnel, during its construction.
space available permitted the construction of a plaza of ten traffic
lanes, which merge with the superhighway that will cross Eastern Havana
and which will have six rapid and eight slow traffic lanes.
The most outstanding characteristics of the Tunnel are the following:
I) Zone of access from old Havana's side called, as previously mentioned "the Orchid".
II) The Tunnel itself, composed of:
a) a tunnel section more than 100 m. long built on site, with its ventilation towers.
b) 5 prestressed concrete tues
107.50 m. long, 22 m. wide and 7.10 m. high each, built in dry dock and
floated
to the
site of their final submersion. The weight of each tube is 16,000
Tons.
c) a tunnel section built on site
(East side) of similar characteristics as the one in old Havana's side.
d) a trench-like exist approximately 500 m. long connecting with the toll collection Plaza.
Page 66-D
PHOTO CAPTION - Factory of Tunnel's segments; all them made of solid materials.
The tunnel will allow the circulation of 4 lanes of vehicles, two in
each direction, with a clearance of 14 ft. and 11 ft. wide for each way
of circulation.
Two sidewalks 3 ft. wide each have been provided for police surveyance
[surveillance], one at each side of the central partition-wall which
separates the two ways of circulation. These sidewalks are
inter-communicated by 60 openings 2.20 by 1.20 m., placed throughout
the entire length of said partition-wall.
The maximum slope of the Tunnel will be 5.75%. The central part
of the Tunnel, that is, the section which corresponds to the third tube
is horizontal in an extension of 100 m.
Due to these dispositions, the channel of entry to the port of Havana,
originally about 160m. Wide and 40 ft. deep, has remained practically
unchanged, thus offering the possibility of having a channel nearly 100
m. wide and 45 ft. deep.
The Tunnel's ventilation will be provided for by the insufflation
of fresh air coming in from two ventilation towers situated on
both shores of the entrance channel, at a distance of more than 500 m.
from each other.
The installation of twelve fans manufactured by "Joy Engineering
Corporation" has been foreseen for this purpose, six in each tower,
with sufficient capacity to insure the renewal of the air inside the
Tunnel within approximately one minute's time.
The fresh air insufflated into the Tunnel will circulate inside special
conduits installed throughout its entire length i.e., two lateral
galleries 3.60 m. high and 1.50 m. wide, and will be evenly distributed
through openings made approximately every 3 m. in the walls of said
galleries.
The carbon monoxide contents inside the Tunnel are automatically
controlled by devices manufactured by the "Mine Safety Appliance Co.",
installed near the entrance and exit of the Tunnel. The
indications appearing on these carbon monoxide alarms will
simultaneously be reproduced in the control rooms, which will enable
the employed on duty to put into service the necessary extra number of
fans to increase the supply of
Page 66-E
PHOTO CAPTION - A view of the going-out lanes of the Tunnel, during its construction.
PHOTO
CAPTION - DRAWING - Plans of Havana's big submarine tunnel. A
display of skill and scientific work had been used in its building.
fresh air immediately.
The water accumulated from the rains in the Tunnel's approaches, both
on the old Havana's and the East sides, will be received by underground
gutters and emptied into two big cistern placed at both entrances, near
the portals. Vertical and automatically started electric pumps
manufactured by "U.S. Pumps, Inc.", will insure final evacuation
to the sea.
Special care has been given to the lighting system as far as lamp
design and particularly regarding the luminous levels, always bearing
in miad [mind] the great luminosity of the sky in Havana.
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