Purple Line Extension TBMs Heading to USA

By TBM News November 16, 2017

The TBMs are due to arrive in LA in mid-December.

Manufactured by Herrenknecht in Schwanau, Germany, the two tunnel boring machines that will dig the twin tunnels for the Purple Line Extension are currently on their way to America. They weigh 1,000 tons each and will be shipped on two cargo vessels, the Palabora and the Integrity, later this month.

The TBMs are due to arrive mid-December and will be stored in Riverside, California, until the Wilshire/La Brea station is ready to receive them.

Over the past few months, Metro invited students from Los Angeles County to participate in the Purple Line Extension Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) Art and Naming Contest. The contest has already received a wide variety of submissions from students ranging from Kindergarten through 12th grade.

The contest is currently open and will close Friday, Nov. 17.

Once all the submissions have been received, a selection committee made up of community influencers will select the finalists. The committee includes Mike Aparicio, Executive Vice President of Skanska; Beverly Hills Mayor Lili Bossee; Los Angeles Council Member David Ryu; Koreatown Youth + Community Center Manager Rick Kim, and LACMA Education Coordinator Albert Valdez.

Once the finalists have been selected, the public will be invited to cast their vote in support of the art and naming contest winners that best capture the Purple Line Extension Project.

The Purple Line Extension project is being constructed in three sections. The first section, which is under construction, is 3.9 miles from Wilshire/Western to Wilshire/La Cienega with new stations at Wilshire/La Brea, Wilshire/Fairfax and Wilshire/La Cienega. The first section is projected to open in late 2023.