This Wednesday, the Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, Juan Carlos Muñoz, together with the general manager of Metro de Santiago, Felipe Bravo, visited the work area in Renca to see the new tunnel boring machine that will be used to begin building the tunnels of the first 6 kilometers of the future Line 7.
As Felipe Bravo explained, “There are soil components that allow us to use this methodology that is new to us.. Through a large machine, it measures more than 105 meters, weighs 1,200 tons and has a cutting wheel more than 10 meters in diameter.”
The TBM excavates the tunnel from a single face and immediately places the concrete linings to form the tunnel. In addition, it advances between 15 and 17 meters per day. This tunnel boring machine will be used in 6.6 kilometers of the tunnel #L7.🚇 pic.twitter.com/kpVQ9Q325K
— Santiago Metro – #NuevoViaje (@metrodesantiago) February 14, 2024
This new line, with an extension of 26 kilometers, it will cross 8 communes: Renca, Cerro Navia, Quinta Normal, Santiago, Providencia, Vitacura and Las Condes. The estimated time will be 37 minutes.
The Minister of Transport, Juan Carlos Muñoz, confirmed that Santiago Metro Line 7 will be operational starting in 2028.
According to the secretary of state, this reduces trips from the commune of Renca to Las Condes by almost 50 minutes, benefiting nearly 1.5 million Santiago residents each year.
