After mining more than 6,300 ft. under Thimble Shoal Channel, Chessie has officially completed her journey, successfully exiting the receiving pit on Two Island on Jan. 29, 2025. Mining was then paused to allow Chesapeake Tunnel Joint Venture (CTJV), the design-build contractor for this project, to remove the temporary bracing struts and steel beams that were in place.

Mining resumed as Chessie tunneled through the remaining portion of the receiving wall.

The completion of mining at Thimble Shoal Channel marks a significant milestone for this project. Chessie, the tunnel boring machine designed and built by Herrenknecht specifically for this project, has removed approximately 500,000 cu. yds. of soil and installed nearly 10,000 concrete segments, each weighing 10 tons, since she began mining in February 2023.

Now that her job is complete, Chessie will be decommissioned and demobilized from the Parallel Thimble Shoal Tunnel project. CTJV will then begin to construct the roadway inside the tunnel, install the electrical/mechanical systems and construct the support buildings.

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is a vital transportation link connecting the DelMarVa peninsula with the mainland in Virginia Beach. The new parallel tunnel will greatly enhance the safety and efficiency of this transportation infrastructure that welcomes more than four million vehicles each year. Once complete, the new tunnel will carry two lanes of southbound traffic while the existing tunnel will carry two lanes of northbound traffic. Current forecast for project completion is early 2028.

Chesapeake Tunnel Joint Venture (CTJV) is the design-build contractor for this project, consisting of Dragados USA and Schiavone Construction Company, LLC. The two sister firms are part of ACS Dragados of Spain, a worldwide leader in underground construction, having been awarded more than 550 underground projects and having completed more than 940 mi. of tunneling through all types of geological conditions.