Project Outline

Today, construction of underground motorways is viewed as one of the most effective ways of dealing with ever-deteriorating traffic conditions in mega cities and to ensure full and maximum productive use of scarce land resources in urban areas.

Part of a massive effort aimed at improving Tehran’s transportation infrastructures, the main objective of the project was to alleviate the existing traffic congestion in the area by providing a direct and rapid link between the city center and its eastern districts.

It was the first time in Iran that a project of such magnitude and complexity had been attempted. While greatly reducing the region’s air and noise pollution, meticulous care was taken to ensure that the project did not interfere with the traditional urban morphology of the district.

Key Statistics

The nearly two kilometer long underground motorway required:

• 175,119 Cubic Meters of Excavation
• 101,000 Cubic Meters of Concrete
• 90,000 Square Meters of Formwork
• 6000 Tonnes of Reinforcement and Metalwork

Structural Features

The motorways structural components consist of a strip foundation, 2.5 meters wide and one meter thick. The main walls (south, middle, and north walls) are 60-centimeters thick, with heights ranging from 6 to 8 meters. The motorway’s surface is composed of a 30-centimeter thick reinforced concrete slab, covered with a 7-10 centimeter layer of asphalt pavement.