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MT 29 July 2018

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5 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 29 JULY 2018 JAMES DEBONO A proposed tunnel to link the db Group's City Centre high- rise to Pembroke will produce a staggering 100,000 cubic me- tres of construction waste – half of which may be reusable in the tunnel structure itself. With the addition of the tun- nel, the total amount of con- struction waste produced by the 37-storey tower project, will be increasing to 436,085 cubic metres, equivalent to nearly half the amount of construction waste produced in a single year. 50,000 cubic metres of the rock material could be reus- able during the construction phase as part of the shotcrete used to layer the tunnel's walls. But tests still have to be conducted to assess the qual- ity of this material and the feasibility of its use. The 1.4km underground tunnel is being proposed to alleviate the daily increase of 7,000 car trips brought about cumulatively by the City Cen- tre and Villa Rosa develop- ments. According to the latest plans by the db Group, the tunnel's western portal of the tunnel will be located on a new road connecting Triq il-Mediter- ran to the Coast Road, whilst the eastern section will link to three underground car parks at City Centre, and the Raddi- son Blu and Corinthia hotels. The tunnel will be excavat- ed by an underground rotary header and will pass under a Natura 2000 site, but the de- velopers' environmental im- pact assessment reports that no habitat loss or damage is expected since the excavation work will be underground. The excavated material will be temporarily stored on site in a stockpile in an area in Suffolk Street behind the pro- posed Chinese embassy – the stockpiles themselves will not exceed three metres in height and will be covered to mini- mise dispersion of fine dust particles. Heavy vehicles will be on site at least every two days to col- lect the excavated waste and transport it to disused quar- ries. A total of 14,000 trips are envisaged throughout excava- tion phase in order to trans- port this material offsite. This would amount to between 50 and 80 trips a day. The trips will not be undertaken dur- ing peak traffic hours, both morning and afternoon, in order to minimise the traffic impacts along the route. Additionally, the material earmarked for shotcreting will be crushed either on site, or at the construction site closer to the former Institute of Tourism Studies. The EIA warns that since the rocks to be excavated are quite resistant, the noise and vibration levels are expected to be very loud. Works will be taking place over a period of 6-9 months but no reference is made to the impact the noise will have on residents living along Triq il-Mediterran. Transport Malta has not yet taken any decision with regards to the funding of a proposed tunnel that will link City Centre to Pembroke. The land transfer contract clearly states that the government has to "undertake at its sole cost, risk, legal and financial liability" the "required im- provements to the road and utilities infrastructure leading to the site". jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt * On a fully utilised Personal Loan of €10,000 at a variable nominal interest rate of 4.99% p.a. for a term of 84 months, the *APRC will be 5.23% p.a. The loan will be repayable in 84 monthly installments of €141.62 each over a term of 7 years. The total sum payable throughout the term of the loan will be €11,936.08 (being capital of €10,000, interest of €1,896.08 and a processing fee of €40). All personal loans are subject to a final approval from your APS Bank servicing branch.* Calculations are based on the following assumptions: That the consumer lending bank base rate (currently at 2.25%) remains unchanged during the period of the loan. The credit agreement is to remain valid for the period agreed between the Bank and the consumer, and that both parties will fulfill their obligations under the terms and by the dates specified in the credit agreement. The consumer has the right to pay the loan in full or in part before the agreed termination. In such circumstances no early repayment penalty fee is incurred. - Loan facility is fully utilised within 3 months from the date of the sanction letter. - *APRC calculation is based on the total cost of the credit to the consumer, expressed as an annual percentage of the total amount of credit. Terms and conditions apply and are available upon request. Approved and issued by APS Bank Ltd, APS Centre, Tower Street, Birkirkara BKR 4012. APS Bank Ltd is licensed by the Malta Financial Services Authority as a credit institution. Make it happen with an APS Personal Loan at 5.23% APRC* Still toying with the idea? DB tunnel to produce 100,000 cbm of waste The 1.4km underground tunnel is being proposed to alleviate the daily increase of 7,000 car trips brought about cumulatively by the City Centre and Villa Rosa developments

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