Now that Berthas mining again, the state says that Seattle Tunnel Partners has to prove it wont fuck up over the next 100 feet.
Now that Bertha's mining again, the state says that Seattle Tunnel Partners has to prove it won't fuck up over the next 160 feet. Washington Department of Transportation

Are you getting sick of reading these Bertha posts? I am getting sick of writing them. They go like this: Bertha stopped. Bertha started. Bertha stopped. Again.

In today's news, Bertha started again.

Today, the Washington State Department of Transportation lifted its January 14 "suspension for cause" that stopped Seattle Tunnel Partners (STP) from mining. Governor Jay Inslee issued the suspension after a barge full of excavated soil tipped into Elliott Bay and a sinkhole opened up near the troubled machine's cutterhead. Not long after these goofs, it was revealed that STP hadn't been doing quality control to make sure that it wasn't over-excavating.

Today, STP got the green light to start the world's second-largest tunnel boring machine up again, but only on a conditional basis.

"As part of the conditions for lifting the suspension for cause, STP will be permitted to tunnel forward and install approximately 25 concrete tunnel rings," WSDOT's statement reads. "During this time, they must demonstrate that they have implemented a number of changes to ensure they can safely continue mining."

Over the next 25 tunnel rings, or 160 feet, STP will have to prove that it's doing the quality control work it neglected earlier, hire new personnel "at key positions within the tunneling operation," and have revamped daily meetings. If the state's contractor succeeds at all that, STP will be allowed to mine 100 more feet to a planned maintenance stop before the machine is scheduled to bore underneath the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

Meanwhile, STP still isn't allowed to remove excavated soil by barge (they'll be doing it by truck).

Here's more from WSDOT:

WSDOT made the decision to conditionally lift the suspension for cause after its team of tunneling experts evaluated documentation submitted by STP over the past several weeks. While mining can resume, barging activities are still restricted pending submittal of additional documentation. STP will remove excavated soil by truck as they continue addressing the barging issue. Repairs to the pier that was damaged during the Jan. 12 barging incident were completed earlier this month.



It's not too encouraging that STP will be operating on a conditional basis just 100 feet before Bertha is supposed to dive under the aging viaduct. Shouldn't the contractor have mastered this drilling thing before they go under a two-tier elevated highway?

This post has been updated.