2025 Texas & Southeast Best Projects
Award of Merit, Airport/Transit: Plane Train Tunnel West Extension at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Plane Train Tunnel West Extension at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Atlanta
Award of Merit
Submitted by Clark Construction
Owner City of Atlanta, Dept. of Aviation
Lead Design Firm STV
General Contractor Clark Construction
This $192-million project significantly increases the efficiency of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s automated people-mover system by reducing headway between trains, thereby accommodating an additional 2,000 passengers per hour.
Specifically, the tunnel extension eliminates the need for trains to back up before switching to tracks for the return trip to the concourse, which significantly improves train operations, according to the project team.
Delivering this benefit meant tunneling a 700-ft extension using a carefully planned and executed excavation strategy that included 200 detonation blasts totaling 45,000 lb of dynamite. To prevent differential settlement in the terminal, the team designed and installed a 19-column micropile underpinning system to transfer loads to bedrock.
The project’s progressive design-build delivery method enabled the team to start construction on early phases of work as design and procurement of later phases were ongoing.
An early decision to relocate the construction shaft and emergency escape route reduced costs and disruptions to airport operations and ground transportation.
The ability to provide the owner with an updated budget and schedule for each design milestone also gave the team the flexibility to address unknown site conditions as they were discovered and to develop solutions that met overarching project objectives.
