Debohra tunnel boring machine celebrates breakthrough for U2 route!

Debohra tunnel boring machine celebrates breakthrough for U2 route!

The “Debohra” tunnel boring machine recently made a significant breakthrough for the new U2 route in Vienna. After nine months of hard work, the impressive machine has dug two kilometers through the ground. The breakthrough occurred at Augustinplatz in the seventh district, where Wiener Linien is now celebrating the progress of the subway extension. “Debohra” has reached the greatest length, as the managing director of Wiener Linien, Gudrun Senk, announced. “ MyDistrict reports that the starting point of the passages was at Matzleinsdorfer Platz, on the border between the Favoriten and Margareten districts.

In the future, “Debohra” will connect a total of four new stations over a total distance of around four kilometers. These are the U2xS Matzleinsdorfer Platz, U2 Reinprechtsdorfer Straße, U2xU4 Pilgramgasse and U2xU3 Neubaugasse. An interesting tradition is also maintained in mining: tunnel boring machines are often given female names to bring good luck and to honor Saint Barbara. The people of Vienna chose the name “Debohra” in an online vote, with almost half of the votes going to this name. Over 18,000 people took part in this voting, true to the motto “there is something to be done” for the new subway route! Vienna lines reports that the machine is 127 meters long, weighs 1,300 tons and is made up of 27,000 individual parts.

The further course

“Debohra” is currently positioned so that it works back towards Matzleinsdorfer Platz. Their next goal is to create a second tube for the U2, which will allow traffic in both directions. The last section of the new U2 tunnel, which will lead to the town hall, is being excavated with excavators. Full commissioning of the new U2 section is planned for 2030, which will mean a significant improvement in connectivity for the approximately 15,000 people who live in the catchment area.

“Debohra” made its first breakthrough in March at Pilgramgasse, where the U2 will intersect with the U4 in the future. This progress shows how important expanding the subway network is for Vienna and how the city continues to invest in infrastructure. The individual segments of the machine were delivered directly to the construction site at Matzleinsdorfer Platz, where they were assembled and transported to a depth of 30 meters. “Debohra’s” cutting wheel has a diameter of almost seven meters and is the largest part of the machine – a true monster that works precisely and powerfully underground. Roberto Cudmani documents the development of tunneling and tunneling machines in his work, which provides an interesting insight into the technology behind such projects.