Digitalisation of Railway Tunnels for Climate Change Adaptation and Enhanced Asset Circularity

The climate change adaptation strategies for the railway tunnels project are managed by digital multidisciplinary coordination, or Building Information Modelling (BIM), and the case study is focused on the Taipei Metro (MT) Tamsui–Xinyi Line in Taiwan for the railway tunnel analysis. With increasing climate change impacts (such as flooding, earthquakes, extreme temperature, sea level rise, etc.) on railway infrastructure, BIM offers a transformative approach to enhance resilience. This research integrated six BIM dimensions (2D & 3D models, visualisation, scheduling, cost estimation, and sustainability), involved additional material information with Ansys Granta EduPack v.2021 to measure the expenditure of materials and the carbon footprint, and further applied them to propose adaptation measures for the chosen railway tunnel. This study aims to enhance actions to adapt and mitigate climate change effects on railway tunnels, thereby analysing the negative impact of weather hazards. The climate change adaptation strategies are determined based on the case study, and the integration of expenditure, planning, and greenhouse gas emissions is assessed by implementing BIM. AutoCAD Revit v.2021 and Navisworks 19.4 are the virtual simulation tools for design coordination and scheduling for climate risk assessments. The results demonstrate the feasibility of BIM in managing adaptation projects and enhancing asset circularity at the end of life, showcasing its potential for improving efficiency. This study is the world’s first to contribute to enhancing infrastructure management by implementing the advanced capabilities of BIM to develop detailed resilience strategies for railway tunnels.