Dorval tunnel boring machine – In October, the REM opened a contest asking Montrealers to help them name the new tunnel boring machine that will be used to dig a tunnel more than 30 metres deep from the REM Technoparc station in St. Laurent to the airport. Following tradition, as the TBM is to be placed ‘under the symbolic protection of a godmother’, the name had be female. The winning name was chosen by an internal committee formed by TBM managers of the REM project office and NouvLR.
After more than 1400 suggestions, the tunnel boring machine will be named ‘Alice’, in reference to Alice Evelyn Wilson, the first female geologist and paleontologist in Canada. She conducted fundamental studies on the analysis of rocks and fossils in the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the Ottawa Valley. Her work led to the development of several reference maps in these regions. She was therefore perfect for a TBM, whose main mission is to dig through the rock.
With the arrival of the pieces, ‘Alice’ is entering the assembly phase and should begin to take shape at the beginning of the year. They will first be running tests in the next few months. The tunnel boring machine will start at 12 meters (40 feet) deep and will go up to 35 meters (115 feet) under the runways of the airport.
On the occasion of unveiling the name of the TBM, the REM collaborated with artist Tania Mignacca, creator of the character Ponto and Madame REM ‘to integrate Alice in the new playful world’. You can see the comic strip she created in the article as well as a picture of Alice Evelyn Wilson. Four winners of the contest will have the opportunity to visit the Technoparc worksite in the coming months with a guest of their choice.
Here are five other proposed names that put smiles on the faces of the committee:
– In the Viral Effect category: ‘Tunnel McTunnelface’, with reference to Boaty McBoatface
– In the play-on-words category: ‘REMonde’ or ‘YULiette’
– In the cartoon category: ‘Dora the excavator’
– In the declaration of love category: ‘Sabrina’, “the most beautiful woman in the world,” writes Mathieu K.
– In the miracle category: ‘Lalleluia’, “finally a direct link to the airport!”
Feature image: Alice the REM Tunnel Boring Machine
Other REM articles:
