A Review of Risk Identification & Risk Assessment on Urban Utility Tunnel Construction

With the rapid development of urban utility tunnel construction in China, the risks encountered during construction are becoming increasingly prominent, necessitating more robust and systematic risk-assessment. This study aims to improve the risk assessment system for the construction of urban utility tunnels and provide theoretical support for engineering practice. This study critically examines current practices in risk identification and risk assessment in both China and international contexts by reviewing existing literature from year 2013 to 2023. The review reveals that existing research and engineering applications predominantly rely on traditional risk-assessment models, which are generally static and expert-driven. These approaches exhibit notable limitations, particularly in their inability to support dynamic risk monitoring, multi-source data integration, and intelligent early-warning functions. Furthermore, the current risk-assessment systems demonstrate insufficient interdisciplinary integration, limited real-time performance, and constrained practical operability in complex construction environments. Based on these findings, there is the need for a paradigm shift towards dynamic and data-driven risk-assessment approaches which focus on integrating big-data analytics, artificial intelligence, and intelligent sensing technologies to enhance the adaptability, timeliness, and predictive capability of risk management systems. Such advancements are essential to promote the intelligent and systematic development of risk control strategies and to improve the overall effectiveness and foresight of risk management in urban utility tunnel construction.