Burnley Tunnel

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View in December 2000, just before opening

The Burnley Tunnel is a highway tunnel in Melbourne, Australia. This tunnel, which joins the West Gate Freeway eastbound to the Monash Freeway, is part of the CityLink Tollway operated by Transurban. Running under the Yarra River, the tunnel provides a bypass of the central business district.

A variable speed limit applies in the tunnel. In normal circumstances the speed limit is 80km/h, but a 60km/h speed limit applies during maintenance.

Regular radio transmissions can be received while in the tunnel because many radio stations have installed their own transmitters. Normal radio broadcasts can be interrupted by management announcements over all channels.

1 Construction
2 Burnley Tunnel Inferno Accident
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Construction

The tunnel was constructed between 1996 and 2000 by Transfield-Obayashi Joint Venture. It is 3.4 km long and is comprised of 2.9 km of driven tunnel and 500m of cut-and-cover. Unlike the shallower and shorter Domain Tunnel, it passes deep under the Yarra. It was subject to significant engineering problems and delays during construction due to unexpectedly high water pressures at its maximum depth of 65 m. The deepest parts of the tunnel (under Punt Road) still occasionally leak due to water pressure in the area.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Burnley Tunnel Inferno Accident

On March 23, 2007 just before 10am, a pile-up occurred in the tunnel involving three trucks and four cars. The crash resulted in an explosion and a subsequent fire which reached temperatures in excess of 1000 degrees Celsius according to Acting Metropolitan Fire Brigade Chief Officer Keith Adamson,^[1] and forced the evacuation of motorists from both the Burnley and nearby Domain tunnels. Three people died in the accident, including Australian Commonwealth games gold medal cyclist Damian McDonald.^[1] Approximately 400 people were advised by the tunnel's safety system to abandon their cars, to leave their keys in the ignition, and to evacuate the tunnel after the collision.

The accident occurred after a truck broke down in the left hand lane. Safety systems allegedly closed the left lane and a response vehicle was on its way to assist the broken-down truck. Two cars travelling in the left hand lane had come up behind the broken-down truck and were attempting to merge into the centre lane. Another truck travelling in the left lane came up behind them and also attempted to merge to the right, but it failed to either stop behind the stationary vehicles or merge successfully. It then collided with vehicles in both the left and middle lanes, resulting in a multi-vehicle pile up involving 4 cars and three trucks. It is believed an explosion resulted from the ignition of a ruptured fuel tank of a vehicle involved in the crash. Other reports of the details vary, however.

The following traffic came to a stop and approximately 200 vehicles became stranded inside the tunnel. The Public Address & Radio Rebroadcast Systems advised motorists to turn off their ignition, leave the keys in, and to evacuate the tunnel. Emergency exits are located throughout the tunnel and lead to separate pedestrian tunnels. Some motorists walked the 1km back along the roadway to the western tunnel entrance. Approximately 400 people were evacuated, three of whom were taken to hospital. Hundreds waited at the tunnel's west entrance until emergency services advised it was safe to remove their vehicles. The tunnel suffered some damage to cables and other internal infrastructure, but is believed the structure was undamaged by the fire.

84 firefighters responded within 5 minutes of the crash occurring, emergency personnel were able to gain access to the Burnley tunnel on foot via a separate emergency tunnel linking the Burnley to the Domain tunnel. Fire hoses were carried through to the crash site while emergency vehicles were stationed in the Domain tunnel. A number of fire appliances were transported contra-flow from the exit portal of the tunnel to the crash site. The fire was estimated to have burned in excess of 1000 degrees Celsius at its peak, the deluge system was activated instantly and this was deemed by firefighters to have greatly aided in keeping the fire under control. The smoke extraction system functioned as planned and removed toxic fumes from the tunnel and out into the open air. Smoke was vented to the ventilation stack in Southbank.

Metropolitan Ambulance Service Paramedics were sent in to treat injured people and some with smoke inhalation. St John Ambulance emergency medical teams were also put on standby in case the accident was deemed as a major disaster and many more injured and fatalities had arrisen.

Australian Olympic cyclist Damian McDonald was one of the three victims in the crash. He won a gold medal in the road team time trial at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada, and also represented Australia at the 1996 Summer Olympics.^[2]