Ground movements due to the construction of cut-and-cover structures and slurry shield tunnel of the Cairo Metro

This paper presents an evaluation of the settlement prediction techniques u sed to estimate the surface settlements associated with the construction of the Greater Cairo Metro Line 2. The construction of the Cairo Metro involv ed the construction of cut-and-cover underground stations and bored tunneli ng. A typical underground station was executed using top-down construction technique. The twenty two meters excavation was carried inside a watertight box with 50-m-deep diaphragm walls to form the sides and a 7-m thick grout ed plug at the bottom. Tunneling was performed using a slurry shield tunnel boring machine, TBM having an internal diameter of 9.48 m. This analysis i s the first step in view of enhancing the procedures of settlement predicti on and appraising potential damages to overlying structures and utilities f or the future construction of the twin road tunnels in the historical urban environment of Al Azhar area and Khan El Khalily market in Cairo. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.