Breaking through the wall of the Canal shaft in Grand Paris Express Project, on 1 March 2022 the Bantan tunnel boring machine concluded its journey in Aubervilliers, while the commencing site of its drive was the depths of La Courneuve to excavate the common tunnel for lines 16 and 17.
Considering as the final stage of the digging process of this colossal machine, is also the completion of the common tunnel for lines 16 and 17, located between the Saint-Denis Pleyel and Le Bourget RER stations. In order to complete the second part of this tunnel, following the construction of the first section by Sarah TBM which is located between the Canal shaft and the Finot structure in Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine, the Bantan tunnel boring machine started its operation. The machine thus part of the Verdun work in 2020, located at the crossroads of La Courneuve and Le Bourget, achieved a total of 3.8 over the 6.4 km of the section.
The next step is to disassemble the machine parts at the bottom of the shaft, raise them to the surface and remove them from the site by workers.
To find out more about the construction of a tunnel, go to the Youtube page of the Grand Paris Express project, by clicking here.