Capitol Hill tunnel is almost finished!

A few minutes ago on my way home i walked around the Capitol Hill station dig site.  I wanted to see if Togo, the tunnel boring machine coming from the University Station, had finished it's tunnel.

I really want to see it break through the wall if i can!

None of the windows from the sidewalk have a direct view of the wall that it will break through when it arrives at Capitol Hill station.  I could see close to that point from one window and another window is directly above the wall, right where Twice Told Tales used to be. It doesn't look like they have broken through yet but there is a lot of activity. They have built a bridge for workers to cross over the wall and they have cleared out the floor of the station where the breakthrough will happen. The big mud pit where the dirt dug out of the downtown tunnel is being dumped before being loaded into trucks is much smaller now.

I walked the route for a few blocks and it seemed very clear from the placement of surveying equipment, bore test holes and shake measurements that the digging machine was under Thomas Street, between Broadway and Federal Ave. I couldn't feel any shaking.

That's only 1 block away, 200 or 300 feet left to go! I think that means it could break through this weekend.

I would love to actually see the machine break through! I know it's a long shot, but i'm going to go by there Saturday afternoon after work and i'll drop by a couple times on Sunday too. I won't be around Monday and Tuesday but i'll check in the evenings. So i hope it happens on Sunday or Wednesday and maybe i'll get to see it!

UPDATE Monday: I looked in again today and the breakthrough has not happened.  I asked a worker at the gate at Broadway & Denny and she said since that tunnel is being dug by another company she has no idea.  The worker at the gate on John seemed certain the breakthrough will happen on March 20th.  I'll be there watching!

UPDATE Tuesday March 20th: When i got home at 8pm they had not broken through and they told me it had been delayed from 3pm to 12 midnight.  At 10:30 i went out and walked around the entire project; as before i couldn't find any good place to view from.  There were two TV stations there, as well as newspapers and bloggers. I tried to talk my way in with the media, but it didn't work.  Eventually i found a window on Broadway with a little bit of a view.  I stood there for 3 hours watching the workers inside, but i slowly came to the conclusion that my view was not going to see the breakthrough whenever it actually happened and i got cold and went home.  The newspaper said they broke through at 4am.   There was a picture of me in the newspaper looking in the window.

I am surprised and a bit angry that there was no attempt to let the public watch the breakthrough.  I understand the security issues, but it wouldn't be hard to have a small roped off area with bleachers.  I really hope they do that for the second tunnel next month, but i'm not hopeful.

the view of the hole, the media tent and my little window photo from the Sound Transit webcam

That's me peering fruitlessly in the window.  photo from the Seattle P-I the next day. 

The wall waiting for the breakthrough.I drew in the approximate line of the lower limit of my view from the window on Broadway.  photo from Capitol Hill Seattle Blog

UPDATE April 5th:  Yesterday i heard back from Sound Transit about the possibility of seeing the second machine breakthrough.  They said NO WAY.  They also told me that breakthrough was due to happen this afternoon.  I walked down there this evening and there was a lot of activity, but as before all the viewpoints into the site can't see that end of the hole.  It's great that the tunnel digging is finished, but it's very frustrating to be so close and not be able to see the finish.