Abstract: Regarding the construction of inclined shafts, the downward driving method and the raise driving method are studied, with No. 3 inclined shaft of Baojiashan tunnel and No. 1 inclined shaft of Qinling tunnel as examples. Conclusions drawn are as follows: 1) The downward driving method is widely used in the construction of inclined shafts of highway tunnels, which are installed to develop new working faces so as to improve the construction efficiency and shorten the construction period. 2) Inclined shafts for which the raise driving method is adopted are normally installed to facilitate the ventilation during the tunnel operation. These inclined shafts have great construction difficulties and have high requirements on equipments. Therefore, the downward driving method, which is a proved construction method and is safer, should be generally adopted for such inclined shafts.

Key words: tunnel, inclined shaft, downward driving method, raise driving method, mucking tunnel