Incorporating Ventilation Fan Plants in Rail and Vehicular Roadway Overbuilds
Richard Ray, WSP USA Inc.
As real estate for new development in urban settings becomes more scarce, commercial high rises are being constructed above open passenger rail tracks and vehicular roadways. Rail and roadway overbuilds are treated as tunnels requiring emergency ventilation systems for train or automobile and truck fires. The value of floor space in residential and office towers poses challenges to engineers responsible for designing fan rooms and shafts for tunnel ventilation systems within the towers. This paper describes a case study of the unique incorporation of tunnel ventilation fan plants in the overbuild structure of a passenger railyard and an adjacent covered roadway.
