Eagle's Nest Tunnel and Sha Tin Heights Tunnel


Eagle's Nest Tunnel and Sha Tin Heights Tunnel are road tunnels in the New Territories of Hong Kong. Both tunnels were officially opened on 21 March 2008. The tunnels connect Cheung Sha Wan through Eagle's Nest hill to Tai Wai, and are linked by a shared toll plaza. Eagle's Nest Tunnel is connected at its southern end to Stonecutters Bridge and Ching Cheung Road, whereas Sha Tin Heights Tunnel is linked at the northern end to Che Kung Miu Road and Tai Po Road. The tunnels are part of the Tsing Sha Highway of Route 8, and were constructed in anticipation of future traffic demands generated by development in the northeast New Territories. The combined toll for the two tunnels is HK$8.

Construction

Eagle's Nest Tunnel

The contract for the construction of the Eagle's Nest Tunnel was awarded to a joint venture between Leighton Asia and Kumagai Gumi. Construction began in October 2003 and the estimated cost of the project is HK$1.84 billion.
The project comprises two 2.1 km, three-lane tunnels from Butterfly Valley to Sha Tin Valley through Eagle's Nest mountain, and all the associated electrical, mechanical and landscaping works that will be necessary. The tunnel was commissioned in March 2008. The full scope of the construction project includes:
  • Twin 2.1 km, three-lane tunnels
  • 400m ventilation shaft
  • North and south tunnel portal buildings
  • Ventilation building off Tai Po Road
  • Three-storey administration building
  • Toll plaza and toll collection facilities
  • 500m tunnel approach road
  • Miscellaneous earthworks, road works and landscaping
  • Electrical and mechanical for both the Eagle's Nest Tunnel and the adjacent, separately constructed, Sha Tin Heights Tunnel
Sandvik Tamrock Corp supplied five new Tamrock Axera tunnelling jumbos for the Eagle's Nest tunnelling project. The first unit is a Tamrock Axera T08, a two-boom jumbo with basket boom and Tamrock Computer Aided Drilling instrumentation. This unit is used at the ventilation shaft and was delivered in April 2004. The remaining four units are all Tamrock Axera T12DATA - three-boom fully computerised jumbos with basket booms. These units were delivered to the site in summer 2004 and are being used in the main tunnel with two units drilling side-by-side for the cross section area of height 11.8m and width 16.3m.

Sha Tin Heights Tunnel

The Sha Tin Heights Tunnel project involved the construction of 0.9 km of road tunnel and a toll plaza, along with connecting roads to Road T3 and slip roads to Che Kung Miu Road. The project had an estimated cost of HK$1.308 billion. The excavation of the tunnel began in November 2002. The project was undertaken by the Civil Engineering and Development Department in Hong Kong. The project included:
  • Site formation, drainage, geotechnical and landscape works for the toll plaza
  • 0.9 km of three-lane twin-bore tunnel underneath Sha Tin Heights
  • Dual, two-lane at-grade carriageway of 0.7 km linking the Sha Tin Heights Tunnel and Road T3
  • Slip roads connecting to Che Kung Miu Road
  • Construction of noise mitigation measures