The project has a strong back up from the government and the private sector that is the MMC Berhad-GAMUDA Berhad to complete the project without any financial issue. The SMART tunnel project is jointly funded by the government, which is the project owner, and the project promoter, MMC-Gamuda Joint Venture, who will finance the road tunnel section at a cost to be recovered by toll collection concession from the government in 40 years time.
Delay in the Schedule:
The SMART tunnel construction is being monitored Daily, weekly and monthly site progress planning are conducted to overcome any possibility in the delay of the works. As an example, usually the
Construction of a bored tunnel along this length will be using NATM techniques. However, it would have been slow and costly and would in practice require systematic advance jet grouting from the surface. In order to ensure the SMART tunnel construction time is finish according to the timeline given and within the safety measure of the tunnel boring, therefore this length is reverted to tunnel boring machine (TBM) excavation.
Environmental Issue:
Besides the using of TBM machines to enable the project done during the given timeline, it also being used for all bored tunnel excavation as it carried less risk of environmental disturbance as the tunnel was build in n urbanized area. The main contractor elected to use 2 TBMs for the tunneling as when tunneling is done under urban infrastructure, ground disturbance such as incidents of sink-holes and ground settlements can be minimized, in perspective of the risks involved.
Public Safety Issue:
The tunnel runs at shallow depth below an urbanized area so that objections to blasting would be expected. Vibration limits were set at 12mm/s at buildings and 25mm/s elsewhere, hours of blasting were to be restricted to within 150m of buildings. The project area and the method of the tunneling work will not harm in any form to the public