NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The Boring Company has started moving more heavy equipment into Nashville.
All of the equipment is for the 9.5-mile tunnel that would link the Nashville International Airport, the Capitol and the Music City Center with 20 stations and possible Broadway stops. The company said it still aims to begin tunneling by year’s end once designs are complete and permits are approved.
“It is a somewhat challenging environment to tunnel through, but it has been done,” MTSU Geosciences Professor Mark Abolins said. “Typically, a lot of effort has been put into understanding what is there [by] using geophysics, the electricity, the magnetism [and] the vibrations.”
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In October, people near the project area reported hearing blasting at the Music City Loop entry point. Last week, The Boring Company posted on X that two rock-removal machines are now set up on the site.
However, House Democratic Caucus Chair John Ray Clemmons said key permits still haven’t been issued.
“Our communications with TDOT have led us to believe there are still permits that need to be filed — applications that need to be filed and permits that need to be issued,” Clemmons explained. “These recent reports about the conveyor belt to remove gravel from this project are pretty surprising because we have received no updates at this time.”
TDOT told News 2 they are still working through the permitting process with The Boring Company. The project will require a lease from TDOT for long-term use, and the Federal Highway Administration must also approve that lease before any real work can begin.
“This being a first-of-its-kind project, we expect this request would result in an enhanced grading permit to address the large scope of work and that may require additional information and requirements of the permittee to ensure all state interests are maintained throughout construction,” a statement from TDOT reads, in part.
The machine includes 18 miles of conveyor belt for the 9-mile tunnel, which moves more than 33,000 pounds of rock per minute. That material, according to The Boring Company, will be hauled to approved disposal or recycling sites.
“The real money on this is to be made from the gravel,” Clemmons said. “The fact that the state of Tennessee did not retain ownership of the gravel to use in our infrastructure is fiscally reckless.”
The Boring Company said it will use a dust-removal system and is in the final testing on new gripper and thrust technology, capable of bracing against 4 million pounds of rock and pushing with 1.5 million pounds of force.
Abolins told News 2 that even with advanced technology, engineers won’t know for sure what is there until they start drilling.
“You don’t know for sure what is there, [or] what the engineers are up against,” Abolins said. “The concern when you are tunneling through the limestone rock that has caves and enlarged cracks in it is water. Water will move through caves and enlarged cracks that can come into a tunnel if there are materials or substances being used in the tunnels. There’s a potential for those to get out into the water and to move through the limestone.”
News 2 reached out to The Boring Company. At the time of this publication, we have not heard back.
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