In-situ fire test for the design of passive protection for the Lafontaine Tunnel

Abstract

The Ministère des Transports, de la Mobilité durable et de l’Électrification des Transports (Quebec Ministry of Transportation) is planning to undertake major safety upgrade and rehabilitation work on the Louis - H. La Fontaine Tunnel to prolong its lifespan and to comply with current codes, standards and best practices in fire life safety as well as emergency egress in case of a major fire event. The tunnel, which is approximately 1 mile long, is one of the main links between Montreal and the City of the Longueuil and is heavily trafficked by cars and trucks as it serves the nearby Port of Montreal. The paper focuses on in-situ fire tests that were carried out in the tunnel in summer 2016 and on how the results of the tests were incorporated into the requirement for the design of the passive protection to maintain its structural integrity during a major fire event in the tunnel.