At the request of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the ITA-CET Committee prepared the programme for a two-day training session on the subject of tunnelling in landslide areas, which took place on 25th and 26th January 2016 in Riyadh.

The aim of this course, aimed at engineers, planners, geologists and technicians, was to explain and demonstrate how to identify and deal with potential risks caused by unstable mountain slopes and hillsides.

The five lecturers explained the soil and rock mechanics which lead to landslides and how to conduct efficient geological and geotechnical investigations in landslide areas. Means and methods of landslide stabilization were outlined, including the use of tunnels as drainage solutions. Case studies for both road and rail tunnels were presented, followed by a look at decisional tools for risk analysis and management.

A round table and discussions closed this training session which was successfully organized by the ITA-CET Foundation in collaboration with the Saudi-Arabian Ministry of Transport.