MILAN, March 12, 2021 – Webuild celebrated the baptism of tunnel-boring machine (TBM) “Mireille” that will begin later this month excavating a 5.3-kilometre section of the metro tunnel for Line 16 in northern Paris, part of Europe’s most ambitious sustainable mobility project: the Grand Paris Express.

The TBM, the eighth to start working on the line, was named by students from nearby schools after Mireille Agletiner, a retired professor who is a city activist.

It will excavate between Bel-Air à Chelles and Mare au Chanvre à Sevran, crossing the municipalities of Montfermeil, Clichy-sous-Bois, Livry Gargan and Sevran.

Line 16 is the second line of the Grand Paris Express on which Webuild is working.

The first is a section of Line 14 South, which Webuild and its partner completed excavating with a TBM breakthrough at the site of the future Pont de Rungis station in southern Paris a few months earlier. The section, Lot 4, runs for 4.05 kilometres. Line 14 South will improve connections and travel times between the Paris-Orly airport and the city centre.

The Grand Paris Express will extend the French capital’s metro and light rail network by 200 kilometres and 68 stations to improve connections between the centre and the periphery. It is set to improve the local economy, create jobs, promote sustainable mobility and reduce vehicle traffic and air pollution.

With a combined track record of more than 13,637 kilometres of rail and metro lines over the span of 114 years, Webuild is a major contributor to the development of urban and extra-urban mobility, supporting efforts to reduce traffic and pollution by offering safe, efficient and environmentally friendly public transport services.