As I write, Egypt is on the verge of its first free elections in over half a century. Numerous Arab leaders have been ousted. The UK parliament is investigating a major media phone hacking scandal. The Euro is under threat of collapse. Greece, Italy and Spain are broke. Encampments remain in prominent financial districts round the globe. The world’s seven billionth inhabitant is preparing for her first winter. Physicists are debating the accuracy of E=MC2. And a 19.25m TBM is onsite and being readied to bore in Saint Petersburg.
It is traditional at this time of year to look at the past 12 months and draw some conclusions, some lessons learnt, mistakes made and some thoughts for the year ahead. But the chaotic year behind us leaves this editor aghast.
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Twenty eleven has seen the world on its head. Politicians have turned the tables on media mogul Rupert Murdoch, calling him before a committee to face allegations of his newspapers’ phone hacking. Arab states have overthrown their dictators and set off on the road to democracy while Western countries come under attack for eroding their citizens’ liberties – the US has been dogged with cries of police brutality and the UK has faced calls to try terrorism suspects imprisoned for years without charges.
The trump card in this deck is the announcement from Cern (European Organisation for Nuclear Research) and an Italian physics lab that researchers claim to have recorded neutrinos travelling faster than the speed of light, completely destroying our understanding of physics.
In the face of such turbulent times it is hard to imagine any business thriving. Yet the tunnelling industry is in a comparative boom. A new world’s largest TBM at 19.25m diameter has been erected, a leap of nearly 4m on the previous record. London’s Crossrail TBMs have been built for a project that has spent 30 years on the drawing board. Excavation was completed on the world’s longest and deepest transport tunnel, the Gotthard Base Tunnel. The US has backed high-speed rail with USD 53bn, China has put up USD 162bn for metro development and the UK Government has pledged support for High-Speed Two.
Understanding the events of the past year is hard enough; the year ahead is anyone’s guess. While the world gets back to the status quo, have a great winter break and from all the T&TI team, have a happy New Year!
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By GlobalData
Jon Young
