📋 Tender Overview
The first section of the Metro Tunnel is now complete with the first tunnel boring machine Joan breaking through to complete the journey from Arden Station to the tunnels western entrance in Kensington.Premier Daniel Andrews and Minister for Transport Infrastructure Jacinta Allan visited the site to celebrate this major milestone with the tunnellers who have worked around the clock for months as Joan dug underneath the city and installed the tunnels massive concrete rings.After tunneling under rail lines CityLink Moonee Ponds Creek North Yarra Main Sewer and the West Melbourne Terminal Station Joan named after former Victorian Premier Joan Kirner has now broken through a 13-metre-deep shaft at Childers Street Kensington.Since her launch in August 2019 Joan has travelled 1.2 kilometres and installed 4200 curved concrete segments to create 700 rings lining the walls of the tunnel. The segments each weighing 4.5 tonnes are among 56000 being manufactured by 70 workers at a purpose-built concrete manufacturing plant in Deer Park.The second TBM Meg named after Australian womens cricket captain Meg Lanning is travelling on a parallel route to carve out the second tunnel from Arden to Kensington and will break through in the coming weeks.Work began in January at the site of the new Anzac Station on St Kilda Road site to assemble the third and fourth TBMs for the Metro Tunnel Project. These are expected to be launched in mid-2020.Work on the states biggest road infrastructure project North East Link is also starting in Melbournes north.Early work includes protecting and moving over 34 kilometres of gas water and sewer pipes and drains and over 95 other utilities to open the way for major construction to start in 2021.The 15.8 billion project will connect the Eastern Freeway and the M80 Ring Road and take 15000 trucks of local roads every day.When finished the Metro Tunnel will create capacity for more than a half a million extra passengers a week during peak times across Melbournes train network.Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel AndrewsWe said wed build Victorias biggest public transport project and its great to see the first section of the Metro Tunnel complete.The Metro Tunnel and North East Link are part of our massive pipeline of road and rail projects that will transform the way Victorians move around our city and state.Quote attributable to Minister for Transport Infrastructure Jacinta AllanWhether its upgrading rail lines building new stations or delivering safer and more reliable roads we are delivering the major transport projects Victorians need.
