Building the underground Singapore - Kuala Lumpur high speed rail (HSR) terminus is likely to be challenging, time-consuming and costly, mainly due to the soft soil conditions prevailing in the area, as acknowledged by civil engineer experts. Despite the difficult soil conditions, typically encountered in many other sites of the country, authorities appear confident that construction of the terminal will be eventually realized. Different soil improvement methods have so far been proposed, and detailed soil investigations will be required before actual construction begins. 

What most commuters of Amtrak trains crossing the Hudson River do not have the opportunity to see, was witnessed by U.S. Senator Cory Booker and Amtrak officials. View of the damaged from hurricane Sandy 105-year old rail tunnels was recorded on video, showing the spalling and corrosion on the concrete bench walls. It is estimated that the tunnels have about 20 years of life, before they are shut down for repair works. Replacement of the tunnels is also examined by officials, with total cost being estimated at $20 billion.

The Hawaiian Legislature passed a bill this week setting a goal for the state of reaching 100% renewable power by 2045. If approved by Governor David Ige, Hawaii will be the first state to officially aim for generating all of its electricity from renewable resources. New York and California have had longer standing initiatives to reduce emissions by 2050 below 80% of the levels from 1990, but no bill to date is as ambitious as Hawaii’s.

After meeting with Chinese officials last week, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin announced plans for a joint space exploration project. This joint venture could lead to the establishment of a Sino-Russian base on the moon. The announcement was made of April 28 in the Chinese city of Hangzhou. Rogozin told reporters:

Crossrail is one of the biggest projects in Europe, which is on its way since the 15th May, 2009. At the time of writing, over 57 million hours have been worked on Europe’s largest construction project across more than 40 worksites throughout London and the southeast.

Safety and efficiency are the key factors in the construction of the SR 99 tunnel, since there will be safety requirements ensuring that it will be adequate for the volume of traffic by using lighting and intelligent transportation systems, while the ventilation, drainage and fire-suppression systems will prevent incidents in accidents.

Moving beyond the electrical car marker, Tesla revealed a few days ago, its latest achievement; a home battery that based on solar panels stores or supplies electricity to homes. With many details still unknown, the battery will be available in the market in the next few months at a cost of $3,000.