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Calif. May Build Tunnel in Quake Region
ALISO VIEJO, Calif. (AP) - Traffic is so bad along the eastern rim of Los Angeles' suburban ring that regional planners are considering the once unthinkable - an 11-mile tunnel through a mountain range in earthquake country.
Critics question the logic of building a multibillion-dollar project in a region so prone to earthquakes that an alternate proposal for a double-decker highway was deemed too dangerous. The tunnel would begin barely a mile from a fault that produced a 6.0-magnitude earthquake about a century ago.
"It's absolutely absurd to have a tunnel 700 feet below ground in earthquake country," said Cathryn DeYoung, mayor of Laguna Niguel and a vocal opponent. "I mean, would you want to be in that tunnel?"
Planners are due to make a decision in mid November on whether to pursue the project.
The proposal for what would be the world's second-longest road tunnel would create a new path between sprawling inland suburbs and Orange County, which has become one of Southern California's fastest-growing job centers.
Such a project could cost up to $9 billion and take 25 years...
Originally posted by FredT
The engineering can be done, and lets face it if a 9.0+ hits its not going to matter much where you are. Yes it may be close to a fault zone, but if the geology of the area supports it........
Originally posted by Mayet
My concern is with the actual buiding of the tunnel. Drilling and blasting could actually create the quakes on a weakened faultline...
Oh geez sorry LA, we slipped a bit there. "hey Joe, easy on the TNT next time"
Such a project could cost up to $9 billion and take 25 years.
BANGKOK TRANSIT SYSTEM LIGHT RAIL ROUTE EXTENSION, THAILAND
The network comprises two lines, extending to a total of 23.1km
...
The cost of building the system was US$1,800 million (£1,100 million), which is almost twice that of a comparable line in Manila, Philippines. Lending banks were promised 680,000 passenger journeys per day (a 16% rate of return) but the present traffic of about 105,000 per day is only just covering operating expenses.
Originally posted by djohnsto77
I agree, that area should be investing more in mass transit systems.