See how crews will build the Great Lakes Tunnel

Sept. 30, 2020

For the first time, a step-by-step animated video of how workers will construct the Great Lakes Tunnel Project is available, providing a pictorial of the process to build the “engineering marvel.”

The video also highlights the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) that will create a new tunnel lining at the same time it is excavating. Enbridge expects the 500-foot-long TBM will take several months to assemble on the south side of the Straits of Mackinac, near Mackinaw City.

Placed below the lakebed, the proposed Great Lakes Tunnel Project will house a replacement segment of Line 5. The region relies on Line 5 for propane, fuels and the production of thousands of everyday products.

“It’s important for everyone to understand all of the safety measures and steps that we are taking to build the Great Lakes Tunnel,” says Enbridge Project Manager Amber Pastoor. “The less than five-minute video walks people through many of the steps that we are undertaking in this project to help ensure that the waters of the Great Lakes are protected, as well as the people who use them.”

The video can be viewed directly below.

The Great Lakes Tunnel will be built by Michigan labor, and harness the knowledge and experience of industry-leading tunnel engineers. Click on the link above to see our newly updated animation video detailing tunnel construction, one step at a time.