Railway Gazette reported that tunneling for Sofia metro Line 2 started on April 6th 2010, when an 85 meters long tunnel boring machine was launched in the presence of Prime Minister Mr Boyko Borisov, Sofia Mayor Mr Yordanka Fandakova, Sofia Metropolitan director Mr Stoyan Bratoev and other government officials. Mr Fandakova named the TBM after the city.

The EUR 15 million machine, weighing 1,600 tonnes, was purchased from Herrenknecht AG by Doğuş İnşaat, the contractor responsible for building the Nadezhda Patriarch Evtimii section of Line 2.

The ceremony was held at the starting pit next to the road intersection at Nadezhda. The TBM will excavate a single two track tunnel over the 3.8 kilometers central section of Line 2 from Nadezhda to the junction of Vitosha Boulevard and Partiarch Evtimii, which will have four stations. Deadline for implementation is 15 months.

The machine will bore up to 9 m per day, generating about 1,000 cubic meters or 50 lorry loads of spoil per day. Construction staff will work 24 hours a day, in three shifts.

The TBM will drill as deep as 23 meters in places due to the nature of the terrain and the need to pass under two rivers in the city centre. The only station on Line 1 situated so deep is Vasil Levski Stadium. Lowest point on the route will be at Serdika station on St Nedelya Square where Line 2 passes under Line 1, 26 meters below ground level.

Line 2 is funded by the EU’s Operational Program for Transport. The project has an indicative budget of EURV 245.7 million, of which around EUR 157.4 million is coming in grants from the European Regional Development Fund. EUR 157 million will come directly from EU funds and EUR 27.7 million from national co funding and the municipality will contribute EUR 61 million.

(Sourced from www.railwaygazette.com)