A large palaeo-landslide reactivated by high-speed railway construction works (northern Spain)

Abstract

The presence of large palaeo-landslides can hinder the construction of railway lines if they cause an alteration of the natural balance of the slope, significantly increasing the cost of the project. During the construction works in a section of the Madrid–Asturias high-speed railway line (Spain), a large-scale hillside instability affected 460 m of the section. The ground movement began 10 months after the start of the excavations and remained active throughout the observation period (2008–2010). Data provided by fieldwork, boreholes and instrumental monitoring have allowed the investigation of the geological units involved, together with the geometry and the kinematics of the mass movement. This landslide involves a Paleozoic basement with an estimated volume of 4 400 000 m 3 . It shows low displacement rates (<45 mm a −1 ) and was accommodated on a single surface of rupture, which reaches more than 60 m depth. The kinematics is favoured by structural and lithological conditions, there being a strong rheological contrast in the lower part of the mobilized ground. This movement is linked to a large palaeo-landslide that was partially reactivated when excavations undermined the lower slopes of the hillside. Technical solutions for the stabilization have already caused an additional cost of 17% over the initial budget.