Digging Wraps Up For San Francisco Central Subway Project
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) -- Construction of San Francisco's Central Subway has reached a big milestone, as digging for the project was completed Wednesday. Neighbors who have dealt with ongoing noise are finally getting some relief.
On Wednesday, the first of two 20-foot wide cutting heads was lifted out of the tunnel it just finished lifting.
While the main bores are finished, it hasn't been easy for residents in North Beach. For months, traffic has been choked, with constant dust and noise.
"They worked all night and had little tractors and things beeping," said North Beach resident lance Carnes.
At the Pellegrini Restaurant, the construction work has been tough on business. Owner Dario Hadijian wants the neighborhood to return to normal.
"Hopefully this is the end of the tunnel and we start seeing some of this major construction go away," he said.
It will take months to remove the rest of the 750-ton drilling machines that worked on the$1.5 billion project.
"We are a point where we are pulling the tunnel boring machines out and by the end of this year these machines will be gone and so will we," said SFMTA spokesperson Paul Rose.
While Wednesday was a big milestone, it will still be at least another five years before the Central Subway will be open to the public.
The giant boring machines will be refurbished, and then possibly used for a rail project in Los Angeles.
