Project Description

The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel is part of the Whittier Access Project, which provides vehicle access to the Town of Whittier, Alaska. The project consists of a 2.5-mile long one-lane, tunnel designed as a combination highway and railway tunnel that allows cars and trains to take turns traversing the tunnel. The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel is the longest highway tunnel in North America, the longest combined rail-highway use tunnel in North America and the first tunnel in the US to utilize both jet and portal fans.

Scope of Services

LACHEL & Associates, Inc. (LFA) worked as an integral part of the engineering teams which assisted the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT&PF) in the development and implementation of the Whittier Access Project. Beginning in the early 1990's, LFA provided geotechnical engineering, tunnel design, constructibility analysis and cost estimating services in the development of the Viable Alternatives Report, which lead to the selection of converting the existing railroad tunnel into a combination highway and railway tunnel.

Beginning in the mid-1990's, LFA provided tunnel design, geotechnical and cost estimating services as part of the team selected by Alaska DOT&PF to develop the conceptual tunnel design, prepare the performance specifications of the design-build contract and develop the design-build tender package. During the design-build period, LFA provided reviews of the contractor's design development for the tunnel excavation, ground support and water control aspects of the project. LFA also provided on-site review and inspection on an as-required basis throughout the field construction period. In May 2001, the Whittier Access Project was selected as the 2001 Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Client

State of Alaska, Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, Anchorage Alaska