How much did it cost to build the Transbay Tube?
According to BART's history of the construction, "The cost of the Transbay tube rose to $180 million from an original estimate of $133 million." Below is a video from December 22, 1966, showing Construction on San Francisco's BART System. The BART website has a handy timeline of the BART system evolution for those who are interested.
How was the Transbay Tunnel built?
Built using the immersed tube technique, the Transbay tube was constructed on land in 57 sections, transported to the site, and then submerged and fastened to the bottom – primarily by packing its sides with sand and gravel. Opened in 1974, the tunnel was the final segment of the original BART plan to open.
What happened to the BART train in the Transbay Tube?
"BART train splits in two in Transbay Tube". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 13, 2017. ^ Kane, Will; Huet, Ellen; Lee, Henry K. (September 3, 2014). "BART reopens Transbay Tube track".
What is a Transbay Tube retrofit?
The Transbay Tube internal retrofit project involves the installation of a steel liner inside the tube and the installation of a new water pumping system.
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How long did it take to build the Transbay Tube?
Constructed in 57 sections, and reposing on the bay floor as deep as 135 feet beneath the surface, the remarkable $180 million structure took six years of toil and seismic studies to design, and less than three years to contract.
Is the Transbay Tube earthquake safe?
The Transbay Tube is BART's most critical asset. Although the tube is structurally sound, in a very large and very rare earthquake, the outer shell and concrete liner are predicted to crack.
When was the BART built?
1957Bay Area Rapid Transit / Founded
How long did it take for BART to be built?
The 3.2-mile bore through the hard rock of the Berkeley Hills was completed in February, 1967, after 466 work days, to become the fourth longest vehicular tunnel in the U.S. The first major equipment contract was awarded in May 1967 for the nation's first fully automatic train control system.
Which BART station is safest?
The safest BART stations were Pittsburg and West Dublin, which had no reported thefts in 2019, Millbrae, with one, and North Concord and South San Francisco, which each had two.
Does San Francisco have an underground city?
Below the surface, there's plenty to discover, ranging from winery caves to tunnels to secret supper clubs. For those who want to catch a glimpse, these four experiences offer a good look at the San Francisco underground.
Why are BART trains so wide?
Prelinger has the curiosity and eye for recognizing potentially rare, tossed-out objects, Bolcik said. The 13-page report – though brief and small in size – describes BART's need for a wider gauge to keep its proposed ultra-lightweight cars on the tracks during high Bay Area wind events.
How many times has BART derailed?
The agency has had at least three other derailments in the past, in 2017, 2011, and 2009, though none of the three appeared to be heat-related, Filippi said. Staff with the California Public Utilities Commission and the National Transportation Safety Board were at the incident site on Tuesday night, Filippi added.
How old are the BART trains?
The Oldest Fleet of Its Kind At an average age of over 30 years old, BART is currently running the oldest big-city fleet in the United States.
Why is BART so loud?
Kolesar says that makes the trains quiet on the straightaways, which constitute a majority of BART's tracks. But because of the design, one of the wheels ends up getting dragged against the rail on turns, which causes that high-pitched squeal. “So one wheel has to be sliding while the other is rolling,” Kolesar says.
What is the top speed of a BART train?
BART has 8 DMU train cars which each have a seating capacity of 104. 70 mph maximum; 35 mph average, including 20-second station stops.
What is BART a nickname for?
BartholomewBart is a masculine given name, usually a diminutive of Bartholomew, sometimes of Barton, Bartolomeo, etc.
Is an underground bunker safe for earthquakes?
Since bunkers are designed to withstand all the effects of a nuclear weapon it is safe to assume they are designed to be earthquake-proof.
Can an underground bunker survive an earthquake?
Impact. Speaking of sustaining impact, a bunker won't survive the big one. Large earthquakes will certainly unseat it. Perhaps that's not what you're prepping for, but if you live in an Earthquake zone that's something to think about.
Are underground shelters safe during an earthquake?
According to that blurb, tunnels are “some of the safest places to be during an earthquake.” Jean-Philippe Avouac, geology professor at Caltech, more or less agrees. “Structures which are underground are less vulnerable to shaking than structures at the surface,” he says. “That's just the effect of inertia.”
Should you go underground in an earthquake?
A small tube-like passage appears to be a relatively safe location that doesn't tend to collapse or sustain much, if any, damage from earthquake shaking. However, large cave passages or “rooms” are notably less stable places.
When did the Transbay Tube open?
The highest priority for upgrades has been the Transbay Tube, BART's most critical asset which opened for passenger service in 1974.
When will safety checks be done for Transbay?
Safety checks will be done before the Transbay Tube work zone is released to passenger service.
When will the inner liner be installed in the BART?
The installation of the inner liner inside of the tube's gallery started in 2017. The next phase began in early 2019. On February 11, 2019, BART shifted from a 4 am to 5 am opening and began single tracking through the tube after 9pm on weekdays to allow more time for the seismic retrofit project.
What is early bird bus?
The Early Bird Express bus service plan was developed to provide an alternative form of transit in the 4 am hour.
When is the locomotive retrofit?
Locomotive Work Train. The retrofit is being done in small sections during a work window of 9:30 pm (Sunday-Thursday) until 5:00 am (Monday-Friday). Starting in 2020, a crew of more than 100 workers will bring equipment and materials into the tube via an 800-foot long custom-built locomotive work train each night.
Where is the work train going to be delivered?
The components of the work train are being delivered to BART’s Hayward Shops. It will begin operations in spring out of the Oakland Shops. It will travel through Lake Merritt and stop at West Oakland Station to pick up the works crew before heading into the tube.
Is the Transbay tube structurally sound?
The Transbay Tube is structurally sound, but we are preparing for a rare and devasting earthquake- defined as a 1,000 year event- something that happens once every thousand years. In an event this large, the tube won’t fail but it could crack and leak.
When was the Transbay tube built?
Construction of the tube began in 1964. The first test trains passed under the Bay in August of 1973. According to BART's history of the construction, "The cost of the Transbay tube rose to $180 million from an original estimate of $133 million."
When was the BART transbay completed?
19 of 68 San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) transbay tube construction. This is the scene that greeted workmen this week when they opened the hatch and entered one end (eastern) of the 57th final section of BART's underwater transbay tube, which was lowered into position at mid-bay on April 3, 1969. The table with the checkered tablecloth, champagne, candle and glasses had been secretly placed in the 328 foot long steel and concrete tube section by workmen at the Bethlehem Shipyard when the section was completed and sealed up for placement several weeks earlier. The champagne was a planned gift for the two key workmen who were expected to be the first persons to walk the four mile distance across the floor of the bay when the other end of the tube section also was opened (SF end). Don Hughes, engineering inspector for BART's consulting engineers, Parsons Brinckerhoff-Tudor-Bechtel, and Shadrach Horde, labor foreman for the tube contractor, Trans-Bay Constructors, Inc. Late in the week, workmen were completing the slow process of sealing up and pumping the water from the cavity-like joint between the last two tube sections (prior to welding them together from the inside), and then Don and Shad were expected to dart all the way across to the Oakland side of the bay. May 5, 1969 Chronicle archives Show More Show Less
How long was the San Francisco BART train stuck in the subway?
47 of 68 San Francisco BART train returning to the Embarcadero Station after being stuck in the tube for 45 minutes. January 15, 1980 Art Frisch/San Francisco Chronicle Show More Show Less
How did the fire on the Transbay train happen?
On January 17, 1979, there was a fire on a BART train when it was going through the Transbay tube. The fire started after an explosion. One firefighter died due to smoke inhalation. 46 people, including 19 firefighters, were injured. It happened in the last car of the train, as it descended into the 3.6 mile long tube. Passengers from the back car fled forward to other cars. Some crawled through the thick smoke.
When was the first BART built in San Francisco?
1 of 68 San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) construction progress as of July 23, 1970 . From the San Francisco Chronicle: "They rolled out the Municipal Railway's 'Old Iron Monster' yesterday to publicize the public's first chance to visit the cavernous world of steel and concrete the Bay Area Rapid Transit is building below Market Street. BART officials, PUC commissioners, Market Street business leaders, newsmen, photographers and TV cameramen hauled aboard the Muni's first streetcar, put in service in 1912, for a rumbling, bone-shaking ride down Market Street to BART's new Montgomery Station. The ride was memorable for the historic touch, but mercifully short. At the end of the one day line was an advance peek at what San Franciscans will see if they take advantage of BART's open house on Sunday for the station at Montgomery and Market Streets." July 23, 1970 Barney Peterson/San Francisco Chronicle Show More Show Less
Who took the first picture of the BART tube?
53 of 68 San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) tube construction. This photo, taken by the San Francisco Chronicle's Duke Downey , is the first picture of the interior of the BART District's transbay tube in position between Oakland and San Francisco. The camera faces the Oakland end of the subway beneath the bay, showing one of the twin bores which will carry high speed trains between Oakland and San Francisco in eight minutes. May 14, 1967 Duke Downey / The Chronicle 1967 Show More Show Less
Where is the seismic joint in the Bay Area Rapid Transit?
52 of 68 San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) showing George Bagley and Manuel Rubalcaba's King Cab Ford Pickup on the rails at the seismic joint between the Oakland portal and the west end of the tube. This BART tube joint is at the Oakland vent structure. January 26, 1982 Michael Maloney/San Francisco Chronicle Show More Show Less
When was the Transbay Tube completed?
The BART project's most dramatic feat, the Transbay Tube, a submerged tube across San Francisco Bay, was completed in 1969 . The project also included a hard-rock tunnel through the Berkeley hills.
What was the Bay Area Rapid Transit District?
The Bay Area Rapid Transit District asked a Bechtel joint venture to develop engineering data, a preliminary design, and estimates for a radically new rapid-transit system. The plans were approved in 1962 and the joint venture was given the green light to perform detailed engineering and manage construction.#N#The project team constructed the 3.6-mile- (5.8-kilometer-) long underwater passage in 57 sections. Fabricated above ground, the concrete-and-steel modules were floated into place, immersed—with their ends sealed—into a trench spanning the bottom of San Francisco Bay, between San Francisco and Oakland. Crews made watertight connections between the sections, removed the end caps, and secured the entire tube.#N#The BART project's most dramatic feat, the Transbay Tube, a submerged tube across San Francisco Bay, was completed in 1969. The project also included a hard-rock tunnel through the Berkeley hills.
How many miles is the Bechtel rail line?
Bechtel delivered more than 70 miles (115 kilometers) of wide-gauge, double-track, ballast-free, fully automated electric railway—which later extended to 104 miles (167 kilometers). The original system proved so effective that the length of BART railway has grown by nearly 50 percent. BART now operates nearly 700 revenue-producing vehicles.
What conditions did the San Francisco excavation work under?
To deal with the wet, muddy environment beneath San Francisco's busy Market Street, crews did their excavation work entirely under compressed-air conditions.
When did the Transbay Tube open?
The Transbay Tube opened in 1974. On the set of "THX1138," George Lucas' first movie. Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images. Today, American Zoetrope is headquartered at the Sentinel Building in North Beach. It's run by Coppola's son, Roman, and daughter Sofia.
Who was the first celebrity to step foot in the Transbay Tube?
The first celebrity to step foot in BART's Transbay Tube? Oddly enough, it was George Lucas. But he wasn't yet a celebrity. Just 25 years old — a 1970 San Francisco Chronicle story called him "frail, bearded, and enormously talented" — Lucas was the marquee director for the brand-new American Zoetrope production company.
What was the first movie that Coppola made?
The first project for Coppola and Lucas was a sci-fi film called "THX-1138.". It was Lucas' directorial debut, building off a short film he made in film school at USC, and he intended to use the Bay Area as his dystopian set. The massive Transbay Tube, mostly built but not yet open, was a perfect choice. In 1969, BART allowed Lucas and his crew ...
What was the name of the tube that Lucas used to film the movie?
The massive Transbay Tube, mostly built but not yet open, was a perfect choice. In 1969, BART allowed Lucas and his crew to film inside. What made "THX-1138" unique was its use of natural light; Lucas didn't use artificial lighting on his sets for the film.
What was the name of the movie that sparked the creation of American Zoetrope?
A 1969 UPI story heralding the creation of American Zoetrope was headlined "San Francisco Moving Up In Movie-Making Endeavors."
Who is the train controller in the movie "THX 1138"?
Train controller Carroll Shepard at the console of BART headquarters in 1972 at Lake Merritt Station, which monitors all trains. Early stages of the control room can be seen in the film "THX 1138.". "THX-1138" opened in 1971 to mixed reviews (it's since become something of a cult favorite).
Who controls the train in the movie "THX 1138"?
But no one knows for how long. Train controller Carroll Shepard at the console of BART headquarters in 1972 at Lake Merritt Station, which monitors all trains. Early stages of the control room can be seen in the film "THX 1138.". "THX-1138" opened in 1971 to mixed reviews (it's since become something of a cult favorite).