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Dredger arrives to begin tunnel work
THE £260m second Tyne Tunnel project reached a major milestone today with the arrival of the dredger Vesalius.
Work will start this weekend on dredging a channel for the second vehicle tunnel under the river, between Jarrow and East Howdon.
The 93m long Vesalius, which arrived at Port of Tyne on the back of a submersible deck cargo barge, both towed by a tug, will be berthed at Riverside Quay, South Shields, before dredging operations begin on Sunday between Jarrow Riverside Park and Howdon Basin.
Brian Reeve, chief technical officer at Port of Tyne, said: "The project has reached an exciting stage, as 400,000 cubic metres of sediment, removed from the dredged trench, will be pumped directly to infill Tyne Dock.
"Not only does this represent the most environmentally friendly option for disposal of the dredged material, but it also provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity to infill the Port of Tyne owned Tyne Dock.
"Once complete, the infill will provide an additional 13 acres of land for future port developments."
Four 90m long reinforced concrete tunnel elements have already been constructed at Walker Dry Dock, ready for immersion into the dredged trench early next year.
Nicolas Caille, project managing director for Bouygues Travaux Publics, the main design and build contractor, said: "The arrival of the dredger is a very visible sign that the key part of this project is about to begin."
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Weather for South Shields
Saturday 11 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 1 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 3 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: West
