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- St. Pauli Elbe Tunnel: Masterpiece of Engineering
Hamburg - the city of superlatives: The largest port, the largest warehouses, the most media companies, the largest entertainment district, the most famous musicals. But that’s not all.
The Hafen City also has a masterpiece of engineering to offer: The St. Pauli Elbe Tunnel, which went into operation in 1911.
Two tunnel tubes connect on a 426.5 meters length the northern harbor edge at the St. Pauli landing bridges with the Elbe island Steinwerder.
A route that at the opening of the underwater passage on September 7, 1911, was crossed by around 45,000 people daily. It was the expansion of the "Gateway to the World" that motivated the construction of the Elbe Tunnel. The number of workers who had to get from the city to the harbor and the shipyards was growing.
This first river tunnel in Europe at the time was a technical sensation and was constructed under the direction of the master builder Otto von Stockhausen. A hydraulically driven tunnel boring shield had bored the tubes with around 6 meters in diameter through the ground (shield tunneling method).
Around 4,400 workers were involved in the project, shoveling sand and soil out of the way in front of the boring shield. The resulting hollow space was secured by riveted iron segments (predecessors of today's tunnel linings).
The compressed air method avoided water ingress through the sandy subsoil by using overpressure. Architecturally, the tunnel impresses then and now: An antique-looking circular building with a domed roof on the side of the landing bridges leads to the Elbe underpass. The southern entrance is located on Steinwerder Island, which was heavily damaged during World War II.
Originally, both buildings were designed identically. However, those on Steinwerder were made of red brick and thus blended into the picture of the surrounding customs and shipyard buildings.
In St. Pauli, tuff stone, basalt, and granite were used, which visually matched the landing bridges.
Your four cabins for horse-drawn carriages and bicycles, two small passenger elevators, and stairs lead almost 24 meters deep into the shaft buildings. From there, passersby enter the brightly tiled tunnel, which is decorated with stoneware reliefs depicting the world of the Elbe with maritime motifs such as sea creatures.
Today, the underwater tunnel has largely lost its infrastructural significance, among other things due to the construction of the New Elbe Tunnel.
However, it is still crossed daily by numerous tourists, cyclists, and pedestrians, while it is soon to be permanently closed to vehicles. As a landmark and popular Hamburg attraction as well as a sought-after location for events, film shoots, and photoshoots, the Old Elbe Tunnel is indispensable to the city.
Since 2003, it has been a protected historical monument and since 2011, it has borne the designation “Historical Landmark of Engineering Art in Germany” awarded by the Federal Chamber of Engineers and the Hamburg Chamber of Civil Engineers.
A great responsibility and a structural engineering challenge for the Hamburg Port Authority (HPA), which plans and supervises the extensive repair work on the St. Pauli Elbe Tunnel on behalf of the Hanseatic city. The entire segmental lining has already been exposed and inspected in the east tube; riveted and bolted connections were replaced and joints sealed.
In addition, in coordination with the historic preservation authorities, wall tiles, the roadway, and lighting were renewed or restored according to historic models. Furthermore, the tunnel was equipped with modern technical installations including an automatic counting system, smoke detectors, and much more.
After the renovation of the east tube was successfully completed and reopened on April 26, the repair measures have continued since June 3, 2018, in the west tube.
As part of the tunnel refurbishment, two staircases for pedestrians are also being newly constructed. To secure the approximately 20-meter-high structure on the south side, the fischer injection mortar FIS EM Plus was used together with an M27 threaded rod.
“Even under extreme conditions such as in earthquake-prone areas, the chemical anchoring system is a safe choice to permanently secure heavy loads in concrete,” emphasizes Arne Saggau, fischer application technician in the field, who was significantly involved in supervising the project.
