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Wikipedia

Metro Tunnel

October 20, 2023

The Metro Tunnel is a metropolitan rail project currently under construction in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It includes the construction of twin 9-kilometre (5.6 mi) rail tunnels between South Kensington (north west of the Melbourne central business district) and South Yarra (in the south east) with five new underground stations. The tunnel will connect the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines with the Sunbury line, creating a new cross-city line that bypasses Flinders Street station and the City Loop. The line is also planned to serve Melbourne Airport via a new branch line west of Sunshine station.[2]

Metro Tunnel
Map of the Metro Tunnel in blue and existing railway lines in grey.
Overview
Other name(s)Melbourne Metro Rail Project
StatusUnder construction
LocaleMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Termini
Stations5
WebsiteOfficial website
Service
TypeSuburban rail
SystemMelbourne rail network
Services
Rolling stockHigh Capacity Metro Trains
History
Commenced2018
Planned opening2025 (2025)
Technical
Line length9 km (5.6 mi)
Number of tracks2
CharacterUnderground
Track gauge1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) Victorian broad gauge
Electrification1,500 V DC from overhead catenary
SignallingBombardier CITYFLO 650 CBTC[1]
Route map

Legend
This diagram:

The project will allow for the operational separation of various existing lines on Melbourne's rail network and increase the capacity of the system to allow for metro-style frequencies. The Metro Tunnel project includes the installation of high-capacity signalling and platform-screen doors. With the delivery of other associated projects including accessibility upgrades, the introduction of High Capacity Metro Trains, and the removal of all level crossings across the Pakenham, Cranbourne and Sunbury lines, will allow the corridor to run to rapid transit standards.[3]

Known during planning as the Melbourne Metro Rail Project, the state government began planning the project in 2015. Initial construction works commenced in early 2017. Sections of the Melbourne central business district, including City Square and parts of Swanston Street, were closed to enable construction of the tunnel and stations. Tunnelling began in 2019 and was completed in 2021. The project was originally expected to be completed in 2026, but has now been brought forward to 2025.[4][5] The project is being delivered by Rail Projects Victoria, formerly the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority, at an estimated cost of $9 to $11 billion.[6]

Background Edit

Further information: Railways in Melbourne

Melbourne's original development occurred at a time when railway technology began to emerge as a feasible and efficient mode of transit. This led to a symbiotic relationship between the CBD and the rail network which grew to surround it. An almost purely radial system of lines, developed largely before 1930, linked the growing suburbs to the economic hub of the city centre, producing a system which supported the daily flow of passengers into and out of the city to access employment opportunities. Despite the increasingly car-oriented developments of the mid-20th century, the suburban rail lines in Melbourne continued to discourage any decentralisation of employment, leaving the city unusually dependent on its central core when compared to cities of similar size globally.[7]

The first underground rail line to be built in Melbourne was the City Loop, which began construction in 1971 and opened gradually between 1981 and 1985. Among its aims were to reduce pressure on Flinders Street station by distributing passengers to three additional stations in the city centre (Parliament, Melbourne Central, Flagstaff), and to improve the capacity of the networks central core by eliminating the need for trains to change direction after terminating at Flinders Street.[8] However, it was not entirely successful in achieving these aims. The four tunnels of the Loop proved to be a capacity constraint on the ten main railway lines entering the CBD, and the peculiarities of operating four single-direction balloon loops meant that inner-city rapid transit was difficult for passengers.[9] At the same time, the Loop consumed much of the available capital available for investment in the city's rail system. As a result, the extensions to the outer suburban network which had been envisaged as a succession to the Loop itself did not eventuate. Meanwhile, patronage on the network had entered a long period of decline, which culminated in the Lonie Report of 1980 recommending the closure of several lines.[10]

The need for an overhaul of the existing commuter rail network was first discussed in the early 2000s as unprecedented population growth began to place significant pressure on existing rail infrastructure and constraints on the inner core of the network as it approached capacity. Other problems faced by the network in the first decade of the 21st century included inefficient operations which had developed during years of low patronage, and a loss of corporate memory, caused in part by the privatisation of rail services in the late 1990s, which limited the flexibility of planners in dealing with the burgeoning passenger numbers. Consequently, a large number of services were experiencing major overcrowding in peak periods.[11] A series of planning documents released during the early 2000s, including Melbourne 2030 (2002), Linking Melbourne (2004) and Meeting Our Transport Challenges (2006) identified that significant capacity constraints existed in the central core and on the Dandenong corridor, but did not propose any significant capital works in the city centre, instead suggesting that the issues could be resolved by relatively minor operational changes and construction of a third track to Dandenong.[12]

Outside the state government, support grew for a more substantial augmentation of the rail network, with many such ideas based on new underground lines through the CBD. In 2005, The Age reported that it had received a number of proposals from planning experts and engineers for rail "loops and arcs" in the central city, and publicised a plan published by Monash University professor Graham Currie for a tunnel between the University of Melbourne to the north of the city and South Yarra station to the south-east. Currie's plan also envisaged extensive improvements to the Melbourne tram network, including upgrading lines along St Kilda Road and Chapel Street to light rail standards.[13] In 2006, the state government considered a plan to construct a combined road and rail tunnel beneath the Yarra River to provide an alternative to the West Gate Bridge, but the idea was deemed unfeasible.[14]

By 2007, the planned third track to Dandenong was effectively abandoned, with no money provided for the project in that year's state budget, and opposition growing from the Public Transport Users Association and others.[15] Later that year, it emerged that train operator Connex and coordinating authority Metlink were among stakeholders encouraging the government to consider a proposal similar to Currie's, but extended to Footscray in the city's west.[16] Melbourne City Council, on the other hand, proposed a tunnel conceptually similar to the Currie plan, but running from Jewell station in the north to Windsor in the south-east.[17]

History Edit

Early planning Edit

In 2008, transport planner Sir Rod Eddington handed down the findings of a report into Melbourne's east–west transport needs, following a commission by the Brumby Government. The Eddington Report recommended two key projects in the city centre: an East West Link road tunnel providing an alternative cross-town route to the West Gate Bridge, and a 17 km (11 mi) rail tunnel from Footscray to Caulfield via the CBD. According to Eddington, the tunnel would increase the capacity of the central rail network by removing some trains from the City Loop, allowing future extensions to the suburban lines.[18] In December that year, the project was incorporated into the government's Victorian Transport Plan, to be built in two stages: the first from Footscray to St Kilda Road, and the second along the rest of the route.[19]

Following the 2010 Victorian election, the newly elected Baillieu Government abandoned the Brumby transport plan, and announced that each of the projects would be individually reviewed, some by the newly created Public Transport Development Authority.[20] Then, in its 2012 budget, the government announced a revised version of the tunnel plan: a "Melbourne Metro" from South Kensington to South Yarra along a similar city centre route to Eddington's original proposal.[21] The revised project included five underground stations, and was submitted to Infrastructure Australia where it was deemed "ready to proceed" and was listed as the highest-priority infrastructure project in Melbourne. A business case was quickly developed based on the constraints of the existing rail system, which was rapidly approaching its maximum capacity.[22] The Department of Transport commenced geotechnical drillings and route investigations.

A dispute between the federal and state government over the funding for the tunnel intensified in 2013, with the approach of that year's federal election. The state budget in early May revealed that none of the $50 million in planning money allocated the previous year had been spent, with new premier Denis Napthine deferring the project in favour of the East West Link.[23] Despite this, with the release of the 2013 federal budget a week later, the Gillard government committed $3 billion to the project on the condition that the state match the contribution. The remaining money was to be raised by a public–private partnership, with the possibility that the contractor could take over running of the line in addition to its construction.[24] However, federal opposition leader Tony Abbott declared that if he was elected in the 2013 federal election, no Commonwealth money would be spent on urban passenger rail, and that any commitment to the Melbourne Metro tunnel project would be revoked.[25]

Meanwhile, Public Transport Victoria's Network Development Plan – Metropolitan Rail (NDPMR), released in early 2013, identified the Metro Tunnel as the centrepiece of a 20-year strategy for improving the Melbourne suburban rail network. The then CEO of Public Transport Victoria Ian Dobbs argued that any expansion of the system was "impossible" without vastly improved capacity in the core of the network.[26] The NDPMR envisaged the tunnel's construction taking place from 2017 to 2022, enabling the segregation of the rail system into four independently operated lines, each with their own routes through the CBD.[27] It also outlined a service plan for the tunnel, proposing an initial peak hour flow of 8 trains per hour in each direction.[28]

Alternate route Edit

In February the following year, the state government announced that it was considering alternative alignments for the tunnel, because of concerns that cut and cover construction in Swanston Street would result in a massive disruption to traffic and retail activity for an extended period of time.[29] At the launch of its 2014 budget, the Napthine government announced that the Metro Tunnel project would be abandoned and replaced with an alternative proposal called the "Melbourne Rail Link". The MRL route consisted of a tunnel from South Yarra to Southern Cross via Kings Domain and Fishermans Bend, where it would join existing City Loop tunnels reconfigured for bidirectional traffic. Furthermore, the government promised that the realignment would enable a Melbourne Airport rail link to be constructed from Southern Cross at the same time.[30] Ultimately, the reconfiguration of the rail network was to have produced similar operational outcomes as the Melbourne Metro plan, with a Sunbury-Dandenong corridor operating directly between Southern Cross and Flinders Street in both directions, but with an additional end-to-end line from Frankston to Ringwood via the new tracks.[31]

According to government ministers, the Melbourne Rail Link offered greater capacity increases and less disruption during the construction phase than existing plans.[32] However, it was heavily criticised, including by Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle, who described the route change as a potential "100-year catastrophe" because of its failure to service the Parkville medical and research precinct. Furthermore, the government revealed in the days following the budget that it had not produced a business case for its plan, and that the decision had been taken primarily on the basis of a "common sense" need to service its urban redevelopment project at Fishermans Bend.[33] Other concerns emerged in the months following the budget, with experts publicly questioning whether the Napthine government had committed sufficient funding,[34] and whether the proposed tunnels could be engineered to successfully avoid the main Melbourne sewer.[35]

Andrews government proposal Edit

 
Proposed extensions to Melbourne's railway network

By November, with the state election approaching, the rail tunnel had become a major point of contention in the campaign, with the government prioritising the East West Link (EWL) road tunnel rather than the rail tunnel. Then Labor opposition Daniel Andrews promised that "under no circumstances" would it build the EWL if elected.[36] As an alternative, Labor proposed reinstating the original Metro Tunnel plan, which retained the support of senior public servants in the Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure. According to their analysis, the original tunnel route performed substantially better than the EWL in a cost-benefits analysis, but no such calculation had been performed for the new Melbourne Rail Link.[37]

On the eve of the election, it emerged that the Abbott federal government had redirected $3 billion in funding to the EWL, and that they would refuse to allow it to be used for the Melbourne Metro project.[38] A Labor state government under Premier Daniel Andrews was elected the following day, and immediately set about cancelling contracts for the EWL.[39] At the same time however, new Treasurer Tim Pallas conceded that it would be "difficult" to deliver the Metro Tunnel given the complexities of the funding dispute.[40]

In February 2015, the Andrews government announced $40 million in immediate funding to establish the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority, in order to commence detailed planning work along the original route, and promised a further $300 million in its upcoming budget. It also revealed that a $3 billion line of credit originally established to fund the EWL would be redirected to the Melbourne Metro project. A timeline was provided, with construction expected to commence in 2018 and the tunnel to be open in 2026. Meanwhile, the federal government continued to refuse to fund the project, which led some observers to describe Andrews' commitment as a "significant political risk".[41][42]

Funding Edit

On 15 April 2015 the government announced that the MMRA had selected a route along Swanston Street as the preferred alignment for the project.[43] The announcement revealed that routes under Elizabeth Street and Russell Street had been considered but were rejected on the basis of engineering difficulties and lack of connectivity respectively. For similar reasons, the route selected along Swanston Street was a shallow tunnel above the City Loop and CityLink tunnels, at a depth of 10 m (33 ft), and was therefore to be constructed using cut-and-cover methods.[43] The announcement was criticised by representatives of city retailers, who claimed that the disruption would cause damage to their businesses.[43] The government acknowledged massive changes to city access but assured retailers they would be treated fairly.[44][45] Further concerns about the proposed route emerged when it emerged that the tunnel would not connect to South Yarra station and that the Pakenham and Cranbourne services would bypass the station entirely once the tunnel opened.[46]

Discussions about the funding of the project continued into late April. The state government acknowledged that the Abbott federal government would not make any contribution to the project, but stated that it remained "hopeful" a future federal government would change the policy.[47] Towards the end of the month, the Andrews government announced that $1.5 billion would be allocated in the upcoming state Budget for the full cost of pre-construction works, land and property acquisition, and detailed route investigations, on top of the already announced money for planning.[48] Among the work funded was the drilling of 140 bore holes to establish ground conditions along the route. However, questions remained about the state government's capacity to fund the remainder of the project, and it was reported that no business case had been completed, despite this being Labor's key objection to the Melbourne Rail Link plan when in opposition.[49] A levy on land tax for commercial properties benefiting from the tunnel, similar to that used on the City Loop and on the contemporary London Crossrail project, was proposed as one possible solution.[50] At the same time the funding announcement was made, the MMRA announced it had appointed technical and planning advisors for the project.[51]

Detailed planning Edit

After the state Budget in May, details gradually emerged of the revised business case for the tunnel, including specific routes and tunnel options. The government ruled out an interchange to the existing railway station at South Yarra because of its expense, a move criticised by opposition parties and public transport advocates.[52][53] Investigative drilling along Swanston Street began in early June, with the government announcing later in June that negotiations with the financiers of the cancelled EWL had concluded, enabling the $3 billion credit facility to be redirected to the Metro Tunnel.[54][55] In August, tunnel boring machines were announced as the preferred engineering option for the sections of the project under the Yarra River.[56] The September federal Liberal leadership spill, which saw Malcolm Turnbull replace Abbott as prime minister, led to new hope for federal funding of the project when Turnbull announced he would consider all transport projects on their merits through Infrastructure Australia.[57]

 
A plan for a cut-and-cover tunnel was replaced with a deeper mined tunnel in order to avoid disruptions to Swanston Street, Melbourne's main civic spine and busiest tram corridor.

In October 2015, the government announced it had abandoned earlier plans to run the tunnel 10 metres beneath Swanston Street and above the existing City Loop tunnels and instead place parts of the project 40 metres (131 ft) underground between CBD North and CBD South stations.[58] The decision was made to reduce the disruption to trams services and traders along Swanston Street and to avoid removing critical utilities, such as telecommunication lines, from beneath the street.[59] The cost of the change was disputed, with the government claiming the additional tunnelling expense would be met by the savings of services remaining in place, but opposition parties arguing the change could be up to $1 billion more expensive.[60]

With the key engineering details in place, the scope of the project and its associated disruptions gradually became public. The government first announced in October it would compulsorily acquire the properties of 63 households and 31 businesses at several locations on the tunnel route.[61] Later, in November, road closures for up to five years were announced near construction sites, and specific station designs were released for the first time.[62] The first package of works, a $300 million contract for site preparation and services relocation, was opened for tenders by MMRA on 25 November.[63]

In February 2016, the full business case for the project was released which detailed its design.[64] Early that year, geotechnical drilling was extended to the Yarra River, as political arguments continued over the Metro Tunnel's funding arrangements.[65] Having selected a public-private partnership model based on long-term maintenance and commercial opportunities for investment,[66] and with a new business case released publicly, the state government continued to request a significant federal contribution, but the Turnbull government said it would not consider the project until it had been independently analysed by Infrastructure Australia.[67] Despite the ongoing dispute, a shortlist of bidders was announced in late February for the early works package, and the construction timeline continued to suggest a 2016 start to works.[68]

In the 2016 state budget, Premier Daniel Andrews and his Treasurer Tim Pallas declared that the state would bear the entire cost of the project in lieu of federal funds, using a combination of increased revenues from a strong property market, and an increase to the states net debt over the following decade.[69] The federal budget released in 2016 did however include $857 million redirected from other infrastructure projects to the tunnel, however, the funds did not represent additional support to Victoria but rather a reallocation of existing contributions.[70]

Contracting Edit

In June 2016, the John Holland Group was awarded a $324 million contract which includes the excavation of 35 metres (115 ft) deep open shafts adjacent to Swanston Street to enable the underground construction of the two new city stations, and the relocation of up to 100 subterranean utilities. Utility relocations started in July 2016.[71][72]

 
Acoustic shed at Anzac station in the domain precinct. Acoustic sheds were installed at Metro Tunnel station precincts to reduce noise and dust.

A shortlist of preferred bidders for the project's main contract, the "tunnel and stations" public-private partnership, was released in August, along with further details of the MMRA's recommended engineering solutions. The bidders were three consortia composed of engineering, construction and finance companies: Continuum Victoria, consisting Acciona Infrastructure, Ferrovial Agroman, Honeywell, Downer Rail, and Plenary Group; Moving Melbourne Together, made up of Pacific Partnerships, CPB Contractors, Ghella, Salini Impregilo, Serco, and Macquarie Capital; and Cross Yarra Partnership, including Lendlease, John Holland, Bouygues, and Capella Capital.[73][74] At the same time, the MMRA exercised its powers of compulsory acquisition to acquire City Square from the City of Melbourne, ahead of the original schedule.[75]

Over the following months, further details of the construction process were made public, including long-term road closures and the precise location of construction sites. The revelations included the MMRA's concerns about the impact of tunneling on the structural integrity of CBD buildings, including Federation Square and St Paul's Cathedral.[76][77][78]

In December 2017, the Government of Victoria selected the Cross Yarra Partnership to deliver the "tunnel and stations" public-private partnership.[79]

Construction Edit

Early works Edit

On 15 January 2017, works officially began on the project, with the partial closure of A'Beckett and Franklin streets in the CBD.[80] The news was followed by Infrastructure Australia releasing a positive assessment of the project's business case and urging the federal government to contribute funding to the tunnel.[81]

Meanwhile, a case was lodged in the Supreme Court of Victoria by protest groups in an attempt to force the government and MMRA to reroute the project around the St Kilda Road precinct.[82] Objections to the tunnel's construction were strengthened in February, when the federal government implemented an emergency heritage protection order for the precinct, preventing the MMRA from removing around 100 trees. The Victorian government decried the move as a political stunt, and insisted that the project would go ahead as planned.[83] At the same time, the Liberal state opposition attempted to grant the City of Stonnington planning powers over the project with a motion in state parliament, in order to force the inclusion of a South Yarra station connection,[84] but eventually withdrew when sufficient support could not be secured in the Legislative Council.[85]

A major milestone was reached in mid-April when City Square was fenced off for the commencement of construction and staging works.[86] A few days later, the government announced that bids for the major construction contract had been received from each of the consortia selected on the previous year's shortlist.[87]

 
Parkville Station construction progress at the University of Melbourne in February 2018, showing the excavation of Grattan St for the station box

Cross Yarra Partnership, led by Lendlease, was named as the "preferred bidder" for the construction contract in July. The station designs presented by the consortium were released publicly, as well as details of connections to existing stations and streetscapes.[88] Shortly afterwards, Bombardier was announced as the successful tenderer for the signalling and communication systems contract, and supplied plans to build signal control centres in Sunshine and Dandenong.[89] The contract, including a rollout of high-capacity signalling (HCS) between Watergardens and Dandenong, was the first awarded in Australia for HCS implementation on existing rail lines.[90]

At the end of August, the state government launched a public naming competition for the tunnel's five new stations, to replace the working names used since the project's genesis.[91] The competition provoked a wide public response, with arguments over whether the names should reflect geographic location, cultural heritage, or tongue-in-cheek references such as Station McStationface. By the time the competition closed at the end of October, more than 50,000 submissions had been made, and the project had gained international attention with author George R. R. Martin commenting on suggestions that the stations be named after locations from his Game of Thrones series of books. However, the government emphasised that the competition was not to be judged by popular demand but by a panel of experts.[92][93]

The selected names for the stations – North Melbourne, Parkville, State Library, Town Hall and Anzac – were announced in November of that year, with the government deciding on "common sense" options based on geographic location and ease of pronunciation. The existing North Melbourne station was to be renamed West Melbourne, but in early 2020 the government announced the existing station would not be renamed and the new station would revert to Arden, due to the potential for confusion and the need to relabel thousands of signalling assets.[94][95][96]

Major construction Edit

 
Town Hall station under construction in 2020, showing the temporary acoustic shed.

The public profile of tunnel works increased through the end of 2017, with Lord Mayor Robert Doyle complaining that the City of Melbourne's pest controllers were being overwhelmed by rats disturbed by underground works. A public viewing platform was established at the City Square building site for the public to view the construction works.[97][98] On 18 December, the state government announced that it had finalised its contract with Cross Yarra Partnership, with a value of some $6 billion. Opposition leader Matthew Guy immediately signalled his intention to bring the dispute over the tunnel's design to the 2018 state election, writing to CYP to indicate that he would seek to include a station at South Yarra should his party win government the following year.[99][100]

 
As part of the project, the first of 65 High Capacity Metro Trains entered service in 2020.

Despite ongoing legal battles, tree felling in the St Kilda Road precinct began in February 2018, marking the commencement of significant construction in the area and the consortium's commitment to its design solution for the tunnel.[101] Then, on 20 February, the state government released the tunnel contracts, and announced that the original completion date of 2026 had been brought forward to a new target of 2025. The announcement also included a response to the Opposition's intention to renegotiate the design, with Premier Daniel Andrews claiming it would mean a two-year delay to the overall project.[102]

In April, further concerns about the tunnel's impact on buildings near its route emerged, with managers of the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Parkville and the Manchester Unity Building in the CBD, along with the University of Melbourne, making submissions to the MMRA suggesting their properties were at serious risk of damage from construction and operation vibration. The authority responded that it would work with stakeholders to minimise impacts and ensure the project did not produce any adverse impacts.[103][104] In the same month, the state government announced an upgrade of South Yarra station separate from the Metro Tunnel, in order to address the concerns about its lack of connectivity to the project.[105]

Following a series of announcements of major rail projects prior to the state budget in May, the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority was renamed to Rail Projects Victoria (RPV) to reflect its involvement in projects outside the Metro Tunnel.[106]

Final designs and concept images for the new stations were released in May 2018, using materials and features intended to reflect the character of the five station precincts. CYP, RPV and Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan expressed their hope that the designs would be accepted and integrated into the Melbourne landscape as new cultural icons following their completion.[107][108] In June, the state government released modelling demonstrating the project's contribution to improved accessibility in the CBD, with travel time savings from virtually all parts of Greater Melbourne to the Parkville and St Kilda Road areas served by the Metro Tunnel.[109]

Tunnelling Edit

 
Finished tunnel as of March 2022 near the future Arden station, prior to the installation of rail.

In April, June, and July 2019, multiple rail lines in Melbourne's east were shut down for several weeks to allow construction of the tunnel entrances near Kensington and South Yarra.[110][111] The first tunnel boring machine began to be assembled in North Melbourne in June 2019.[112]

In February 2020, TBM Joan completed the first section of the tunnel from Arden to Kensington,[113] travelling 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi) and installing 4,200 curved concrete segments to create 700 rings lining the walls of the tunnel. Two months later, TBM Meg completed the accompanying tunnel, from Arden to Kensington.[114] The third TBM, TBM Millie, began tunnelling to the South Yarra eastern tunnel entrance on 27 April 2020. As part of this process, it was lowered underground and assembled along with its counterpart TBM Alice.[115][116] It tunnelled 1.7 kilometres (1.06 mi) to its destination. TBM Alice was released a month later, on 25 May 2020.[117] TBM Joan began tunnelling again, this time towards Parkville, from Arden, on 25 May 2020.[118] The release of TBM Meg towards Parkville meant that for the first time in the project, all four TBMs were tunnelling at the same time.[119]

In May 2020, major traffic changes were put in place near Flinders Street Station in order to improve safety around large trucks entering acoustic sheds as a part of the project. Left turns from St Kilda Road to Flinders Street were removed, and the pedestrian crossing between St Paul's Cathedral and Federation Square was temporarily closed.[120]

Digging for the twin 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) tunnels completed in May 2021.[121] Between all four TBMs, this averaged to a rate of 90 m (295 ft) per week.[122] Road-headers constructed 26 cross-passages along the tunnel in 2021.[123] In mid-2022 crews began laying track in the tunnels.[124] This was completed in 2023, with the successful installation of 4000 pre-cast concrete tracks panels, including sections of floating slab track, padded underneath to reduce noise and vibrations as trains pass through.[125][126]

Metro tunnel construction photos 2018–2022
  •  

    Parkville station construction site with installed station roof and gantry cranes, 2019

  •  

    State Library station construction site, 2018

  •  

    State Library station construction site on A'Beckett St with newly constructed acoustic shed, 2019

  •  

    State Library station construction site, 2019

  •  

    Town Hall station construction site on Swanston St with under construction acoustic shed, 2019

  •  

    Arden station entrance under construction March 2022

  •  

    Melbourne Arden station platforms under construction March 2022

  •  

    Melbourne Arden station entrance under construction March 2022

Stations Edit

 
The new Anzac Station tram interchange was opened to tram passengers in December 2022. Pictured is the wooden canopy that will sit above the future Metro station entrance.

With tunnelling complete in mid-2021, the project's main focus moved on to station excavation, construction and fit-out.[123] The project's five metro stations were designed by RSHP, Hassell and Weston Williamson.[127]

Road-headers broke through at the platform tunnels of Town Hall station in August 2021 as the major excavation phase on the two CBD stations neared completion.[128] The "trinocular" construction method involved the construction of three overlapping tunnels with vaulted ceilings.[129] Town Hall was excavated to a depth of 33 m (108 ft) below street level, with the station platforms to sit 27 m (89 ft) below street level.[128] This followed the completion of road-header excavation of the platform caverns at State Library in 2020.[130]

Construction on Arden station's aboveground structure ramped up in late 2021, and consisted of a unique entrance of 15 large brick arches.[131] The design, intended to reflect the area's industrial heritage, consisted of 100,000 bricks hand-laid into concrete beams that rise to 15 m (49 ft) above the station entrance.[132]

In 2022, acoustic sheds began to be dismantled at the Town Hall and Anzac station locations in order to allow construction of above-ground station structures.[133][134]

Work began on a large wooden canopy at Anzac station in March 2022, which was constructed over the year using 190 cross-laminated timber panels.[135] The canopy sits in a tram stop on St Kilda Road and will be Melbourne's first direct platform-to-platform tram/train interchange.[135] In November 2022, the tram lines were rerouted over three weeks from their temporary route on the west side of the station to their permanent position on either side of the station entrance and interchange.[136] The new tram interchange was opened in December 2022.[137][138]

Work began on eight large, concrete concourse columns at Town Hall station in May 2023, with the columns installed by October.[139]

Testing and commissioning Edit

With track, wiring, signalling and platform screen doors installed, in July 2023 the first test train was successfully sent through the tunnel.[140] Trains were running at the full tunnel speed of 80km/h by August 2023.[141] The day before announcing his retirement then-Premier Daniel Andrews, whose government initiated the project in 2015, rode a test train through the tunnel at full speed, telling local media it was the best moment of his premiership.[142][143] In October the first passenger services on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines began operating under high-capacity signalling in preparation for integrating the lines with the Metro Tunnel.[144] This was the first time moving-block signalling had been retrofitted to an existing network in Australia.[144]

Project description Edit

 
Interactive map showing the Metro Tunnel's finalised route in grey. The tunnel will eventually connect the Sunbury line (top left) with the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines (bottom right).

The project will consist of two 9-kilometre (5.6 mi) rail tunnels between South Kensington and South Yarra via the CBD with five new underground stations. A new cross-city metro style line will be created that runs from the north-west to the south-east of Melbourne, linking the Sunbury line with the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines. The line is also planned to eventually run to Melbourne Airport via the planned Melbourne Airport Rail link, but that project has been delayed.[145] The new line, like similar projects the Elizabeth Line, Sydney Metro and the Paris RER, will be a hybrid suburban and rapid transit system, running a high-frequency rapid service in the inner city but also running trains to Melbourne's outer commuter suburbs.[3][146]

The five new city stations are underground and will feature 230 m (755 ft)-long platforms, large concourses, and full-height platform-screen doors, a first for Melbourne.[147] As part of the project, a new fleet of 65 High Capacity Metro Trains have been ordered to add further capacity to the network, the first of which entered service in 2020. These trains are the most advanced and highest capacity in Melbourne, and will run on the Metro Tunnel corridor as 7-car trains. They can be expanded to 10-car trains in the future with the new underground stations long enough to accommodate the extended trains. A new stabling and maintenance depot was built in Pakenham East to house the new fleet.[148]

 
Geographic map showing the planned cross-city rapid transit corridor created by the Metro Tunnel at its full extent, including the proposed Airport Rail Link and short extension to Pakenham East.

Three of the new stations – Arden, Parkville, and Anzac – are cut-and-cover box designs, and involved digging down to build the station.[149] The two CBD stations – State Library and Town Hall – are mined stations beneath Swanston Street, built using a unique "trinocular" construction method of three overlapping caverns dug by road headers and featuring high ceilings, an arched vault design and 19 m (62 ft) wide platforms.[150][151][149] With the exception of Arden, all of the stations feature multiple entrances. Anzac features a direct tram-train interchange with a large wooden canopy, while Arden will anchor a major urban renewal project in Melbourne's inner north. The two CBD stations will feature large transit-oriented development and retail.

As part of the project, a new third turnback platform will be built at West Footscray station. High capacity signalling in the form of moving-block communication-based signalling technology will be installed along the Metro Tunnel corridor and on the Airport branch to allow trains every two minutes.[152][153] This is the first time high-capacity signalling has been installed on a legacy rail corridor in Australia.[153] Station platforms were also extended along the corridor to allow for the new trains.

 
Rebuilt, elevated Carnegie railway station on the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines, which will form part of the Metro Tunnel corridor.

Along with the Metro Tunnel project works, there are a number of associated infrastructure projects by the Victorian Government to upgrade the corridor, and the wider rail system in Melbourne, to rapid transit standards. The Sunbury Line Upgrade project, announced in the 2019 state budget, is upgrading the corridor from the tunnel to Sunbury and includes: platform extensions, accessibility upgrades, power and substation upgrades, new train stabling, and the removal of all level crossings on the Sunbury line to allow for High Capacity Metro Trains.[154] The Cranbourne Line Upgrade is removing all remaining level crossings along the Cranbourne line, and has duplicated 8 km (5.0 mi) of track to allow higher frequency services on the branch.[155] An extension of the Cranbourne line to Clyde is also planned, though has not yet been funded by the government.

The Level Crossing Removal Project has removed a number of other level crossings on the future Metro Tunnel corridor, including several on the Pakenham line and nine level crossings between Caulfield and Dandenong, in which four stations were rebuilt and 9 km (5.6 mi) of elevated rail constructed in 2017.[156] The Pakenham line will also be extended a short distance, with a new station built at Pakenham East near the new rail depot for the line.[157] This new station is being delivered by the Level Crossing Removal Project.

Together these projects will establish a fully grade-separated corridor with high-capacity signalling capable of running frequent services through the new tunnel. According to the project's business case, it will allow an extra 39,000 passengers to travel in the peak period each day, with a further 41,000 extra passengers if 10-car trains are introduced.[3]

Network changes Edit

The Metro Tunnel will create a new cross-city metro line when it connects the Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines. As a result, these lines will be removed from the City Loop, and a major reorganisation of the network will occur. According to plans released by the Department of Transport and Planning in 2018, the Frankston line will be returned to the City Loop and cease through-routing with the Werribee and Williamstown lines.[158] Instead, the Sandringham line will through-route with those lines via the Flinders Street Viaduct. [158] The extra capacity will allow more peak services across the network, particularly for the Craigieburn and Upfield lines, which will no longer share a single loop track with the Sunbury line.[159]

  •  

    Current Melbourne rail network

  •  

    Post-Metro Tunnel network showing the reorganisation of lines

The 2016 project business case envisioned the tunnel including a newly electrified branch to Melton in the west.[160] The business case planned for an initial 19 trains per hour during the peak running into the tunnel from the east and 18 from the west, increasing to 21 from the east and 23 from the west under the extended program after the Melton branch was added.[160] Since then, this plan has been superseded by plans to run the Melbourne Airport rail link through the tunnel as a branch in the west.

In the 2022/23 state budget, money was allocated to train and employ 300 extra train drivers and station staff to allow Metro Trains Melbourne to operate the tunnel and the increased services across the network in 2025.[161][162]

Tram network Edit

 
The current Elizabeth Street tram terminus will become a through-route under Metro Tunnel plans.

Relieving congestion on the busy Swanston Street tram corridor is a key goal of the Metro Tunnel project, and the opening of the tunnel will also see some major changes to the tram network in the central city.[3]

Several tram connections and upgrades were funded as part of the project, including new track along Park Street in South Melbourne and on Flinders Street in the CBD, allowing trams to turn onto Flinders from the current tram terminus on Elizabeth Street.[163] This will allow some trams routes to be directed away from Swanston Street towards the western end of the CBD, more evenly balancing services in the central city and reducing reliance on the Elizabeth and Flinders corridors.[3] The 2016 business case envisioned routes 5 and 64 being rerouted to Docklands via Park and Spencer Streets, and Elizabeth Street trams continuing down Flinders Street to terminate outside the CBD at Melbourne Park and Jolimont.[3]

In 2017, new tram tracks were installed on Toorak Road West in South Yarra and trams were temporarily removed from Domain Road to allow construction of Anzac station, at the same time tram routes 8 and 55 were combined to form the new route 58.[163][164]

Stations Edit

The project involves construction of five new underground railway stations:

Arden Edit

Main article: Arden railway station, Melbourne

Arden station is to be located near the intersection of Arden and Laurens Streets in North Melbourne. It is planned to allow for urban renewal of the formerly industrial suburb, and is expected to serve some 25,000 residents once complete. The station entrance will be located on Laurens Street, between Queensberry and Arden streets to provide direct access to existing residential, retail and commercial areas east of Laurens Street. Provision will be made for an additional entrance at the western end of the station to service the Arden area as it develops in the future. Arden Station will be within walking distance of the North Melbourne Recreation Centre, Arden Street Oval and the existing route 57 tram.[165]

Parkville Edit

Main article: Parkville railway station, Melbourne
 
University Square and Grattan Street near the University of Melbourne, site of the under construction Parkville station

Parkville station is to be located on the intersection of Grattan Street and Royal Parade in Parkville, in proximity to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and Melbourne University.[166] The station will relieve pressure on north–south tram routes and the congested 401 bus service between North Melbourne station and the university/hospital precinct. New tram stops are to be constructed as part of the project allowing for seamless tram and train interchanges. The station will service the busy hospital and research precinct, including the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre. The station is expected to service 60,000 passengers each day in 2031.

State Library Edit

Main article: State Library railway station
 
State Library of Victoria
 
Building 80 at RMIT University, near the future State Library station entrance

State Library station is to be located on the intersection of Swanston and La Trobe Streets in the Melbourne CBD above the existing Melbourne Central station. This will allow for interchange opportunities between stations and existing lines and relieve pressure on Swanston Street tram routes.[167] The station will service the northern end of the CBD, as well as the State Library of Victoria and RMIT University. The line will continue under Swanston Street running below the existing City Loop tunnels. The station will serve up to 40,000 passengers once complete.

Town Hall Edit

Main article: Town Hall railway station, Melbourne
 
Melbourne's City Square, which has been demolished for construction of Town Hall station

Town Hall station is to be located on the corner of Swanston and Flinders Streets, with direct connections to Flinders Street station, adding further relief to tram services and servicing the southern end of the CBD.[168] The station will be near St Paul's Cathedral, the Arts Precinct, Southbank and Federation Square and have exits on Collins Street. The line will proceed south running below the Yarra River and the Burnley and Domain tunnels. The station is expected to serve some 55,000 passengers during peak periods.

Anzac Edit

Main article: Anzac railway station
 
Domain Interchange, 2004, site of the under construction Anzac station

Anzac station is to be located on St Kilda Road and Park Streets adjacent to the Domain Interchange, with interchange opportunities with existing St Kilda Road tram services. The station will service the Shrine of Remembrance, the busy St Kilda Road office precinct, the Royal Botanic Gardens and Melbourne Grammar School.[169] The station is expected to serve approximately 14,500 passengers during peak periods.

Analysis and criticism Edit

Network capacity Edit

The primary stated aim of the project is to increase capacity within the inner core of the metropolitan network, as well as improving reliability and efficiency. It aims to accomplish this by creating a single, end-to-end metropolitan line between Sunshine in the west and Dandenong in the south-east, linking the existing Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines and providing them with a dedicated city centre route. Because this re-routing removes services from two City Loop tunnels, more capacity will theoretically be available for the Werribee, Williamstown, Craigieburn, Upfield, Frankston and Sandringham lines. According to official project estimates, the result is a total capacity increase of 39,000 passengers in the city centre for each peak period.[170]

However, the need for a new tunnel to increase capacity has been subject to criticism that capacity on the existing network is under utilised or hamstrung by operational inefficiencies, since the project was originally proposed in Eddington's report. Paul Mees in 2008[171] noted that the claim the new tunnel would allow 40 extra trains per hour through the city should be compared to an increase of 56 trains per hour by increasing line capacity to 24 trains per hour per line (80% of the theoretical 30 trains per hour allowed by the current signalling system), reducing dwell times and other efficiencies such as terminating some trains at Flinders Street station rather than Southern Cross station. Mees also criticised the proposal for absorbing rail investment at the expense of extending the network at its periphery.

On the other hand, transport economist Chris Hale has argued that while the capacity increase offered by the tunnel is real and probably more significant than that offered by incremental upgrades to the existing network, the project is the product of poor planning processes in the Victorian transport bureaucracy and consequently reflects a "single-issue" approach to infrastructure which is inconsistent with contemporary best practice. Hale contends that the tunnel's route, which reinforces existing transport networks and focuses on the inner city as the single connection point of all transport, exemplifies outmoded thinking and, therefore, achieves its primary aims while failing to accomplish more extensive benefits for a similar cost.[172]

Ultimately, the business case for the Metro Tunnel considered high-capacity signalling and other network upgrades as alternatives to the proposed route. It concluded that, when compared to the tunnel, upgrading to HCS would produce inferior outcomes because of its limited capacity benefits and its failure to integrate improvement of the existing network with service to new parts of the central city. Additionally, the business case noted that by making incremental upgrades to the rail system without substantially altering its structure, the opportunity for more reliable operations as a result of fully segregated lines would be lost.[173]

Swanston Street tram services Edit

With the proposed route expected to run directly under Swanston Street and towards the south-eastern suburbs, the project will provide much needed relief to existing and overcrowded tram services that run from St Kilda Road into the CBD. Currently, St Kilda Road is the busiest tram thoroughfare in the world, with up to 10 tram routes running into the CBD via Swanston Street. The Melbourne Metro is expected to relieve this pressure by allowing commuters to catch the train into the Domain Interchange and CBD from either the north-west or south-eastern suburbs, avoiding already congested tram routes. In particular, many of the existing tram routes that run through St Kilda Road terminate at Melbourne University, which will be more easily accessible from the nearby Parkville station when the Melbourne Metro is complete.

Concerns existed over expected disruption along the Swanston Street corridor, with former Premier Denis Napthine controversially describing the alignment of the tunnel as akin to the Berlin Wall, which would "tear the city in half for up to two years".[174] However, changes to engineering and construction plans allowed for tunneling, rather than the 'cut and cover' method of construction, resulting in minimal disruption for trams, pedestrians and traders along Swanston Street during construction.[175]

Further network expansion Edit

In 2012, Public Transport Victoria, the body charged with planning and coordination of public transport services in Victoria, released the Metropolitan Network Development Plan. It emphasised the need for the project as a precursor for other heavy rail expansion projects, given current limitations on existing inner city infrastructure to cope with additional services running into the inner part of the network. In particular rail lines to Doncaster, Melbourne Airport and Rowville require additional inner core capacity to enable services to run on those lines into the CBD.

Jobs Edit

The project is expected to employ up to 3,500 people during peak construction.[176] The training program called MetroHub provides all training, recruitment and project inductions for people working on the Tunnel and Stations work package. 500 apprentices, trainees and engineering cadets are expected to be a part of this program.[177]

South Yarra station Edit

The project ruled out integration with major south-eastern hub South Yarra station, meaning it will be bypassed by trains using the new tunnel. Passengers from the city on the tunnel's Dandenong line will not be able to transfer to the Sandringham line at South Yarra, and passengers travelling towards the city on the Dandenong line will be required to change at Caulfield to pursue travel to South Yarra. Pressure from the State Opposition and the Greens to include the station in the tunnel's design went unheeded.[178] The Melbourne Metro Rail Authority has defended the plan, saying the economic case for integration is poor, requiring the building of a new hub and the acquisition of 114 properties including part of The Jam Factory at a cost of an extra $1 billion; a business case estimate indicates a return of only 20c for every dollar spent on the station.[179] Integration of South Yarra station into the project has been the subject of lobbying as a requirement for federal funding.

Cost and funding Edit

A significant point of contention has been the relative cost of the project and the capacity of the State to afford up to $11 billion. The former Abbott Federal Government had specifically ruled out funding urban rail projects across the country, limiting funding options for the Melbourne Metro project and placed pressure on the State Government to fund the project with a mix of debt and private business investment. While funding allocated by the Abbott Government for the now-scrapped East West Link was specifically ruled out for use on urban rail projects in Melbourne,[25] the former Turnbull government had removed this condition.[180]

Federal funding options for the project were realised by the former Abbott Government's 'Asset Recycling Program', which matches 15% of the cost of any State Government asset that is sold to be used for infrastructure projects. The sale of the Port of Melbourne by the Andrews Government could provide additional funding to the Melbourne Metro project once sold, including an indirect contribution by the Federal Government.[181]

See also Edit

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External links Edit

  • Project website
  • Railpage – Detailed analysis and commentary on the project

October 20, 2023
metro, tunnel, metropolitan, rail, project, currently, under, construction, melbourne, victoria, australia, includes, construction, twin, kilometre, rail, tunnels, between, south, kensington, north, west, melbourne, central, business, district, south, yarra, s. The Metro Tunnel is a metropolitan rail project currently under construction in Melbourne Victoria Australia It includes the construction of twin 9 kilometre 5 6 mi rail tunnels between South Kensington north west of the Melbourne central business district and South Yarra in the south east with five new underground stations The tunnel will connect the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines with the Sunbury line creating a new cross city line that bypasses Flinders Street station and the City Loop The line is also planned to serve Melbourne Airport via a new branch line west of Sunshine station 2 Metro TunnelMap of the Metro Tunnel in blue and existing railway lines in grey OverviewOther name s Melbourne Metro Rail ProjectStatusUnder constructionLocaleMelbourne Victoria AustraliaTerminiSouth KensingtonSouth YarraStations5WebsiteOfficial websiteServiceTypeSuburban railSystemMelbourne rail networkServicesSunbury Pakenham Cranbourne Airport from 2029 Rolling stockHigh Capacity Metro TrainsHistoryCommenced2018Planned opening2025 2025 TechnicalLine length9 km 5 6 mi Number of tracks2CharacterUndergroundTrack gauge1 600 mm 5 ft 3 in Victorian broad gaugeElectrification1 500 V DC from overhead catenarySignallingBombardier CITYFLO 650 CBTC 1 Route mapLegendkmSunbury Werribee Williamstown Airport linesFootscray0 00South KensingtonWerribee Williamstown linesNorth MelbourneMoonee Ponds CreekArdenParkvilleState Library Melbourne Central City LoopFlagstaff ParliamentTown Hall Flinders Street City Loop amp other linesSouthern Cross Parliament Jolimont RichmondYarra RiverAnzacFrankston lineSouth Yarra9 00Cranbourne Frankston Pakenham linesHawksburnThis diagram viewtalkeditThe project will allow for the operational separation of various existing lines on Melbourne s rail network and increase the capacity of the system to allow for metro style frequencies The Metro Tunnel project includes the installation of high capacity signalling and platform screen doors With the delivery of other associated projects including accessibility upgrades the introduction of High Capacity Metro Trains and the removal of all level crossings across the Pakenham Cranbourne and Sunbury lines will allow the corridor to run to rapid transit standards 3 Known during planning as the Melbourne Metro Rail Project the state government began planning the project in 2015 Initial construction works commenced in early 2017 Sections of the Melbourne central business district including City Square and parts of Swanston Street were closed to enable construction of the tunnel and stations Tunnelling began in 2019 and was completed in 2021 The project was originally expected to be completed in 2026 but has now been brought forward to 2025 4 5 The project is being delivered by Rail Projects Victoria formerly the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority at an estimated cost of 9 to 11 billion 6 Contents 1 Background 2 History 2 1 Early planning 2 2 Alternate route 2 3 Andrews government proposal 2 4 Funding 2 5 Detailed planning 2 6 Contracting 3 Construction 3 1 Early works 3 2 Major construction 3 2 1 Tunnelling 3 2 2 Stations 3 3 Testing and commissioning 4 Project description 5 Network changes 5 1 Tram network 6 Stations 6 1 Arden 6 2 Parkville 6 3 State Library 6 4 Town Hall 6 5 Anzac 7 Analysis and criticism 7 1 Network capacity 7 2 Swanston Street tram services 7 3 Further network expansion 7 4 Jobs 7 5 South Yarra station 7 6 Cost and funding 8 See also 9 References 10 External linksBackground EditFurther information Railways in Melbourne Melbourne s original development occurred at a time when railway technology began to emerge as a feasible and efficient mode of transit This led to a symbiotic relationship between the CBD and the rail network which grew to surround it An almost purely radial system of lines developed largely before 1930 linked the growing suburbs to the economic hub of the city centre producing a system which supported the daily flow of passengers into and out of the city to access employment opportunities Despite the increasingly car oriented developments of the mid 20th century the suburban rail lines in Melbourne continued to discourage any decentralisation of employment leaving the city unusually dependent on its central core when compared to cities of similar size globally 7 The first underground rail line to be built in Melbourne was the City Loop which began construction in 1971 and opened gradually between 1981 and 1985 Among its aims were to reduce pressure on Flinders Street station by distributing passengers to three additional stations in the city centre Parliament Melbourne Central Flagstaff and to improve the capacity of the networks central core by eliminating the need for trains to change direction after terminating at Flinders Street 8 However it was not entirely successful in achieving these aims The four tunnels of the Loop proved to be a capacity constraint on the ten main railway lines entering the CBD and the peculiarities of operating four single direction balloon loops meant that inner city rapid transit was difficult for passengers 9 At the same time the Loop consumed much of the available capital available for investment in the city s rail system As a result the extensions to the outer suburban network which had been envisaged as a succession to the Loop itself did not eventuate Meanwhile patronage on the network had entered a long period of decline which culminated in the Lonie Report of 1980 recommending the closure of several lines 10 The need for an overhaul of the existing commuter rail network was first discussed in the early 2000s as unprecedented population growth began to place significant pressure on existing rail infrastructure and constraints on the inner core of the network as it approached capacity Other problems faced by the network in the first decade of the 21st century included inefficient operations which had developed during years of low patronage and a loss of corporate memory caused in part by the privatisation of rail services in the late 1990s which limited the flexibility of planners in dealing with the burgeoning passenger numbers Consequently a large number of services were experiencing major overcrowding in peak periods 11 A series of planning documents released during the early 2000s including Melbourne 2030 2002 Linking Melbourne 2004 and Meeting Our Transport Challenges 2006 identified that significant capacity constraints existed in the central core and on the Dandenong corridor but did not propose any significant capital works in the city centre instead suggesting that the issues could be resolved by relatively minor operational changes and construction of a third track to Dandenong 12 Outside the state government support grew for a more substantial augmentation of the rail network with many such ideas based on new underground lines through the CBD In 2005 The Age reported that it had received a number of proposals from planning experts and engineers for rail loops and arcs in the central city and publicised a plan published by Monash University professor Graham Currie for a tunnel between the University of Melbourne to the north of the city and South Yarra station to the south east Currie s plan also envisaged extensive improvements to the Melbourne tram network including upgrading lines along St Kilda Road and Chapel Street to light rail standards 13 In 2006 the state government considered a plan to construct a combined road and rail tunnel beneath the Yarra River to provide an alternative to the West Gate Bridge but the idea was deemed unfeasible 14 By 2007 the planned third track to Dandenong was effectively abandoned with no money provided for the project in that year s state budget and opposition growing from the Public Transport Users Association and others 15 Later that year it emerged that train operator Connex and coordinating authority Metlink were among stakeholders encouraging the government to consider a proposal similar to Currie s but extended to Footscray in the city s west 16 Melbourne City Council on the other hand proposed a tunnel conceptually similar to the Currie plan but running from Jewell station in the north to Windsor in the south east 17 History EditEarly planning Edit In 2008 transport planner Sir Rod Eddington handed down the findings of a report into Melbourne s east west transport needs following a commission by the Brumby Government The Eddington Report recommended two key projects in the city centre an East West Link road tunnel providing an alternative cross town route to the West Gate Bridge and a 17 km 11 mi rail tunnel from Footscray to Caulfield via the CBD According to Eddington the tunnel would increase the capacity of the central rail network by removing some trains from the City Loop allowing future extensions to the suburban lines 18 In December that year the project was incorporated into the government s Victorian Transport Plan to be built in two stages the first from Footscray to St Kilda Road and the second along the rest of the route 19 Following the 2010 Victorian election the newly elected Baillieu Government abandoned the Brumby transport plan and announced that each of the projects would be individually reviewed some by the newly created Public Transport Development Authority 20 Then in its 2012 budget the government announced a revised version of the tunnel plan a Melbourne Metro from South Kensington to South Yarra along a similar city centre route to Eddington s original proposal 21 The revised project included five underground stations and was submitted to Infrastructure Australia where it was deemed ready to proceed and was listed as the highest priority infrastructure project in Melbourne A business case was quickly developed based on the constraints of the existing rail system which was rapidly approaching its maximum capacity 22 The Department of Transport commenced geotechnical drillings and route investigations A dispute between the federal and state government over the funding for the tunnel intensified in 2013 with the approach of that year s federal election The state budget in early May revealed that none of the 50 million in planning money allocated the previous year had been spent with new premier Denis Napthine deferring the project in favour of the East West Link 23 Despite this with the release of the 2013 federal budget a week later the Gillard government committed 3 billion to the project on the condition that the state match the contribution The remaining money was to be raised by a public private partnership with the possibility that the contractor could take over running of the line in addition to its construction 24 However federal opposition leader Tony Abbott declared that if he was elected in the 2013 federal election no Commonwealth money would be spent on urban passenger rail and that any commitment to the Melbourne Metro tunnel project would be revoked 25 Meanwhile Public Transport Victoria s Network Development Plan Metropolitan Rail NDPMR released in early 2013 identified the Metro Tunnel as the centrepiece of a 20 year strategy for improving the Melbourne suburban rail network The then CEO of Public Transport Victoria Ian Dobbs argued that any expansion of the system was impossible without vastly improved capacity in the core of the network 26 The NDPMR envisaged the tunnel s construction taking place from 2017 to 2022 enabling the segregation of the rail system into four independently operated lines each with their own routes through the CBD 27 It also outlined a service plan for the tunnel proposing an initial peak hour flow of 8 trains per hour in each direction 28 Alternate route Edit In February the following year the state government announced that it was considering alternative alignments for the tunnel because of concerns that cut and cover construction in Swanston Street would result in a massive disruption to traffic and retail activity for an extended period of time 29 At the launch of its 2014 budget the Napthine government announced that the Metro Tunnel project would be abandoned and replaced with an alternative proposal called the Melbourne Rail Link The MRL route consisted of a tunnel from South Yarra to Southern Cross via Kings Domain and Fishermans Bend where it would join existing City Loop tunnels reconfigured for bidirectional traffic Furthermore the government promised that the realignment would enable a Melbourne Airport rail link to be constructed from Southern Cross at the same time 30 Ultimately the reconfiguration of the rail network was to have produced similar operational outcomes as the Melbourne Metro plan with a Sunbury Dandenong corridor operating directly between Southern Cross and Flinders Street in both directions but with an additional end to end line from Frankston to Ringwood via the new tracks 31 According to government ministers the Melbourne Rail Link offered greater capacity increases and less disruption during the construction phase than existing plans 32 However it was heavily criticised including by Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle who described the route change as a potential 100 year catastrophe because of its failure to service the Parkville medical and research precinct Furthermore the government revealed in the days following the budget that it had not produced a business case for its plan and that the decision had been taken primarily on the basis of a common sense need to service its urban redevelopment project at Fishermans Bend 33 Other concerns emerged in the months following the budget with experts publicly questioning whether the Napthine government had committed sufficient funding 34 and whether the proposed tunnels could be engineered to successfully avoid the main Melbourne sewer 35 Andrews government proposal Edit nbsp Proposed extensions to Melbourne s railway networkBy November with the state election approaching the rail tunnel had become a major point of contention in the campaign with the government prioritising the East West Link EWL road tunnel rather than the rail tunnel Then Labor opposition Daniel Andrews promised that under no circumstances would it build the EWL if elected 36 As an alternative Labor proposed reinstating the original Metro Tunnel plan which retained the support of senior public servants in the Department of Transport Planning and Local Infrastructure According to their analysis the original tunnel route performed substantially better than the EWL in a cost benefits analysis but no such calculation had been performed for the new Melbourne Rail Link 37 On the eve of the election it emerged that the Abbott federal government had redirected 3 billion in funding to the EWL and that they would refuse to allow it to be used for the Melbourne Metro project 38 A Labor state government under Premier Daniel Andrews was elected the following day and immediately set about cancelling contracts for the EWL 39 At the same time however new Treasurer Tim Pallas conceded that it would be difficult to deliver the Metro Tunnel given the complexities of the funding dispute 40 In February 2015 the Andrews government announced 40 million in immediate funding to establish the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority in order to commence detailed planning work along the original route and promised a further 300 million in its upcoming budget It also revealed that a 3 billion line of credit originally established to fund the EWL would be redirected to the Melbourne Metro project A timeline was provided with construction expected to commence in 2018 and the tunnel to be open in 2026 Meanwhile the federal government continued to refuse to fund the project which led some observers to describe Andrews commitment as a significant political risk 41 42 Funding Edit On 15 April 2015 the government announced that the MMRA had selected a route along Swanston Street as the preferred alignment for the project 43 The announcement revealed that routes under Elizabeth Street and Russell Street had been considered but were rejected on the basis of engineering difficulties and lack of connectivity respectively For similar reasons the route selected along Swanston Street was a shallow tunnel above the City Loop and CityLink tunnels at a depth of 10 m 33 ft and was therefore to be constructed using cut and cover methods 43 The announcement was criticised by representatives of city retailers who claimed that the disruption would cause damage to their businesses 43 The government acknowledged massive changes to city access but assured retailers they would be treated fairly 44 45 Further concerns about the proposed route emerged when it emerged that the tunnel would not connect to South Yarra station and that the Pakenham and Cranbourne services would bypass the station entirely once the tunnel opened 46 Discussions about the funding of the project continued into late April The state government acknowledged that the Abbott federal government would not make any contribution to the project but stated that it remained hopeful a future federal government would change the policy 47 Towards the end of the month the Andrews government announced that 1 5 billion would be allocated in the upcoming state Budget for the full cost of pre construction works land and property acquisition and detailed route investigations on top of the already announced money for planning 48 Among the work funded was the drilling of 140 bore holes to establish ground conditions along the route However questions remained about the state government s capacity to fund the remainder of the project and it was reported that no business case had been completed despite this being Labor s key objection to the Melbourne Rail Link plan when in opposition 49 A levy on land tax for commercial properties benefiting from the tunnel similar to that used on the City Loop and on the contemporary London Crossrail project was proposed as one possible solution 50 At the same time the funding announcement was made the MMRA announced it had appointed technical and planning advisors for the project 51 Detailed planning Edit After the state Budget in May details gradually emerged of the revised business case for the tunnel including specific routes and tunnel options The government ruled out an interchange to the existing railway station at South Yarra because of its expense a move criticised by opposition parties and public transport advocates 52 53 Investigative drilling along Swanston Street began in early June with the government announcing later in June that negotiations with the financiers of the cancelled EWL had concluded enabling the 3 billion credit facility to be redirected to the Metro Tunnel 54 55 In August tunnel boring machines were announced as the preferred engineering option for the sections of the project under the Yarra River 56 The September federal Liberal leadership spill which saw Malcolm Turnbull replace Abbott as prime minister led to new hope for federal funding of the project when Turnbull announced he would consider all transport projects on their merits through Infrastructure Australia 57 nbsp A plan for a cut and cover tunnel was replaced with a deeper mined tunnel in order to avoid disruptions to Swanston Street Melbourne s main civic spine and busiest tram corridor In October 2015 the government announced it had abandoned earlier plans to run the tunnel 10 metres beneath Swanston Street and above the existing City Loop tunnels and instead place parts of the project 40 metres 131 ft underground between CBD North and CBD South stations 58 The decision was made to reduce the disruption to trams services and traders along Swanston Street and to avoid removing critical utilities such as telecommunication lines from beneath the street 59 The cost of the change was disputed with the government claiming the additional tunnelling expense would be met by the savings of services remaining in place but opposition parties arguing the change could be up to 1 billion more expensive 60 With the key engineering details in place the scope of the project and its associated disruptions gradually became public The government first announced in October it would compulsorily acquire the properties of 63 households and 31 businesses at several locations on the tunnel route 61 Later in November road closures for up to five years were announced near construction sites and specific station designs were released for the first time 62 The first package of works a 300 million contract for site preparation and services relocation was opened for tenders by MMRA on 25 November 63 In February 2016 the full business case for the project was released which detailed its design 64 Early that year geotechnical drilling was extended to the Yarra River as political arguments continued over the Metro Tunnel s funding arrangements 65 Having selected a public private partnership model based on long term maintenance and commercial opportunities for investment 66 and with a new business case released publicly the state government continued to request a significant federal contribution but the Turnbull government said it would not consider the project until it had been independently analysed by Infrastructure Australia 67 Despite the ongoing dispute a shortlist of bidders was announced in late February for the early works package and the construction timeline continued to suggest a 2016 start to works 68 In the 2016 state budget Premier Daniel Andrews and his Treasurer Tim Pallas declared that the state would bear the entire cost of the project in lieu of federal funds using a combination of increased revenues from a strong property market and an increase to the states net debt over the following decade 69 The federal budget released in 2016 did however include 857 million redirected from other infrastructure projects to the tunnel however the funds did not represent additional support to Victoria but rather a reallocation of existing contributions 70 Contracting Edit In June 2016 the John Holland Group was awarded a 324 million contract which includes the excavation of 35 metres 115 ft deep open shafts adjacent to Swanston Street to enable the underground construction of the two new city stations and the relocation of up to 100 subterranean utilities Utility relocations started in July 2016 71 72 nbsp Acoustic shed at Anzac station in the domain precinct Acoustic sheds were installed at Metro Tunnel station precincts to reduce noise and dust A shortlist of preferred bidders for the project s main contract the tunnel and stations public private partnership was released in August along with further details of the MMRA s recommended engineering solutions The bidders were three consortia composed of engineering construction and finance companies Continuum Victoria consisting Acciona Infrastructure Ferrovial Agroman Honeywell Downer Rail and Plenary Group Moving Melbourne Together made up of Pacific Partnerships CPB Contractors Ghella Salini Impregilo Serco and Macquarie Capital and Cross Yarra Partnership including Lendlease John Holland Bouygues and Capella Capital 73 74 At the same time the MMRA exercised its powers of compulsory acquisition to acquire City Square from the City of Melbourne ahead of the original schedule 75 Over the following months further details of the construction process were made public including long term road closures and the precise location of construction sites The revelations included the MMRA s concerns about the impact of tunneling on the structural integrity of CBD buildings including Federation Square and St Paul s Cathedral 76 77 78 In December 2017 the Government of Victoria selected the Cross Yarra Partnership to deliver the tunnel and stations public private partnership 79 Construction EditEarly works Edit On 15 January 2017 works officially began on the project with the partial closure of A Beckett and Franklin streets in the CBD 80 The news was followed by Infrastructure Australia releasing a positive assessment of the project s business case and urging the federal government to contribute funding to the tunnel 81 Meanwhile a case was lodged in the Supreme Court of Victoria by protest groups in an attempt to force the government and MMRA to reroute the project around the St Kilda Road precinct 82 Objections to the tunnel s construction were strengthened in February when the federal government implemented an emergency heritage protection order for the precinct preventing the MMRA from removing around 100 trees The Victorian government decried the move as a political stunt and insisted that the project would go ahead as planned 83 At the same time the Liberal state opposition attempted to grant the City of Stonnington planning powers over the project with a motion in state parliament in order to force the inclusion of a South Yarra station connection 84 but eventually withdrew when sufficient support could not be secured in the Legislative Council 85 A major milestone was reached in mid April when City Square was fenced off for the commencement of construction and staging works 86 A few days later the government announced that bids for the major construction contract had been received from each of the consortia selected on the previous year s shortlist 87 nbsp Parkville Station construction progress at the University of Melbourne in February 2018 showing the excavation of Grattan St for the station boxCross Yarra Partnership led by Lendlease was named as the preferred bidder for the construction contract in July The station designs presented by the consortium were released publicly as well as details of connections to existing stations and streetscapes 88 Shortly afterwards Bombardier was announced as the successful tenderer for the signalling and communication systems contract and supplied plans to build signal control centres in Sunshine and Dandenong 89 The contract including a rollout of high capacity signalling HCS between Watergardens and Dandenong was the first awarded in Australia for HCS implementation on existing rail lines 90 At the end of August the state government launched a public naming competition for the tunnel s five new stations to replace the working names used since the project s genesis 91 The competition provoked a wide public response with arguments over whether the names should reflect geographic location cultural heritage or tongue in cheek references such as Station McStationface By the time the competition closed at the end of October more than 50 000 submissions had been made and the project had gained international attention with author George R R Martin commenting on suggestions that the stations be named after locations from his Game of Thrones series of books However the government emphasised that the competition was not to be judged by popular demand but by a panel of experts 92 93 The selected names for the stations North Melbourne Parkville State Library Town Hall and Anzac were announced in November of that year with the government deciding on common sense options based on geographic location and ease of pronunciation The existing North Melbourne station was to be renamed West Melbourne but in early 2020 the government announced the existing station would not be renamed and the new station would revert to Arden due to the potential for confusion and the need to relabel thousands of signalling assets 94 95 96 Major construction Edit nbsp Town Hall station under construction in 2020 showing the temporary acoustic shed The public profile of tunnel works increased through the end of 2017 with Lord Mayor Robert Doyle complaining that the City of Melbourne s pest controllers were being overwhelmed by rats disturbed by underground works A public viewing platform was established at the City Square building site for the public to view the construction works 97 98 On 18 December the state government announced that it had finalised its contract with Cross Yarra Partnership with a value of some 6 billion Opposition leader Matthew Guy immediately signalled his intention to bring the dispute over the tunnel s design to the 2018 state election writing to CYP to indicate that he would seek to include a station at South Yarra should his party win government the following year 99 100 nbsp As part of the project the first of 65 High Capacity Metro Trains entered service in 2020 Despite ongoing legal battles tree felling in the St Kilda Road precinct began in February 2018 marking the commencement of significant construction in the area and the consortium s commitment to its design solution for the tunnel 101 Then on 20 February the state government released the tunnel contracts and announced that the original completion date of 2026 had been brought forward to a new target of 2025 The announcement also included a response to the Opposition s intention to renegotiate the design with Premier Daniel Andrews claiming it would mean a two year delay to the overall project 102 In April further concerns about the tunnel s impact on buildings near its route emerged with managers of the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Parkville and the Manchester Unity Building in the CBD along with the University of Melbourne making submissions to the MMRA suggesting their properties were at serious risk of damage from construction and operation vibration The authority responded that it would work with stakeholders to minimise impacts and ensure the project did not produce any adverse impacts 103 104 In the same month the state government announced an upgrade of South Yarra station separate from the Metro Tunnel in order to address the concerns about its lack of connectivity to the project 105 Following a series of announcements of major rail projects prior to the state budget in May the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority was renamed to Rail Projects Victoria RPV to reflect its involvement in projects outside the Metro Tunnel 106 Final designs and concept images for the new stations were released in May 2018 using materials and features intended to reflect the character of the five station precincts CYP RPV and Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan expressed their hope that the designs would be accepted and integrated into the Melbourne landscape as new cultural icons following their completion 107 108 In June the state government released modelling demonstrating the project s contribution to improved accessibility in the CBD with travel time savings from virtually all parts of Greater Melbourne to the Parkville and St Kilda Road areas served by the Metro Tunnel 109 Tunnelling Edit nbsp Finished tunnel as of March 2022 near the future Arden station prior to the installation of rail In April June and July 2019 multiple rail lines in Melbourne s east were shut down for several weeks to allow construction of the tunnel entrances near Kensington and South Yarra 110 111 The first tunnel boring machine began to be assembled in North Melbourne in June 2019 112 In February 2020 TBM Joan completed the first section of the tunnel from Arden to Kensington 113 travelling 1 2 kilometres 0 75 mi and installing 4 200 curved concrete segments to create 700 rings lining the walls of the tunnel Two months later TBM Meg completed the accompanying tunnel from Arden to Kensington 114 The third TBM TBM Millie began tunnelling to the South Yarra eastern tunnel entrance on 27 April 2020 As part of this process it was lowered underground and assembled along with its counterpart TBM Alice 115 116 It tunnelled 1 7 kilometres 1 06 mi to its destination TBM Alice was released a month later on 25 May 2020 117 TBM Joan began tunnelling again this time towards Parkville from Arden on 25 May 2020 118 The release of TBM Meg towards Parkville meant that for the first time in the project all four TBMs were tunnelling at the same time 119 In May 2020 major traffic changes were put in place near Flinders Street Station in order to improve safety around large trucks entering acoustic sheds as a part of the project Left turns from St Kilda Road to Flinders Street were removed and the pedestrian crossing between St Paul s Cathedral and Federation Square was temporarily closed 120 Digging for the twin 9 kilometres 5 6 mi tunnels completed in May 2021 121 Between all four TBMs this averaged to a rate of 90 m 295 ft per week 122 Road headers constructed 26 cross passages along the tunnel in 2021 123 In mid 2022 crews began laying track in the tunnels 124 This was completed in 2023 with the successful installation of 4000 pre cast concrete tracks panels including sections of floating slab track padded underneath to reduce noise and vibrations as trains pass through 125 126 Metro tunnel construction photos 2018 2022 nbsp Parkville station construction site with installed station roof and gantry cranes 2019 nbsp State Library station construction site 2018 nbsp State Library station construction site on A Beckett St with newly constructed acoustic shed 2019 nbsp State Library station construction site 2019 nbsp Town Hall station construction site on Swanston St with under construction acoustic shed 2019 nbsp Arden station entrance under construction March 2022 nbsp Melbourne Arden station platforms under construction March 2022 nbsp Melbourne Arden station entrance under construction March 2022 Stations Edit nbsp The new Anzac Station tram interchange was opened to tram passengers in December 2022 Pictured is the wooden canopy that will sit above the future Metro station entrance With tunnelling complete in mid 2021 the project s main focus moved on to station excavation construction and fit out 123 The project s five metro stations were designed by RSHP Hassell and Weston Williamson 127 Road headers broke through at the platform tunnels of Town Hall station in August 2021 as the major excavation phase on the two CBD stations neared completion 128 The trinocular construction method involved the construction of three overlapping tunnels with vaulted ceilings 129 Town Hall was excavated to a depth of 33 m 108 ft below street level with the station platforms to sit 27 m 89 ft below street level 128 This followed the completion of road header excavation of the platform caverns at State Library in 2020 130 Construction on Arden station s aboveground structure ramped up in late 2021 and consisted of a unique entrance of 15 large brick arches 131 The design intended to reflect the area s industrial heritage consisted of 100 000 bricks hand laid into concrete beams that rise to 15 m 49 ft above the station entrance 132 In 2022 acoustic sheds began to be dismantled at the Town Hall and Anzac station locations in order to allow construction of above ground station structures 133 134 Work began on a large wooden canopy at Anzac station in March 2022 which was constructed over the year using 190 cross laminated timber panels 135 The canopy sits in a tram stop on St Kilda Road and will be Melbourne s first direct platform to platform tram train interchange 135 In November 2022 the tram lines were rerouted over three weeks from their temporary route on the west side of the station to their permanent position on either side of the station entrance and interchange 136 The new tram interchange was opened in December 2022 137 138 Work began on eight large concrete concourse columns at Town Hall station in May 2023 with the columns installed by October 139 Testing and commissioning Edit With track wiring signalling and platform screen doors installed in July 2023 the first test train was successfully sent through the tunnel 140 Trains were running at the full tunnel speed of 80km h by August 2023 141 The day before announcing his retirement then Premier Daniel Andrews whose government initiated the project in 2015 rode a test train through the tunnel at full speed telling local media it was the best moment of his premiership 142 143 In October the first passenger services on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines began operating under high capacity signalling in preparation for integrating the lines with the Metro Tunnel 144 This was the first time moving block signalling had been retrofitted to an existing network in Australia 144 Project description Edit nbsp Interactive map showing the Metro Tunnel s finalised route in grey The tunnel will eventually connect the Sunbury line top left with the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines bottom right The project will consist of two 9 kilometre 5 6 mi rail tunnels between South Kensington and South Yarra via the CBD with five new underground stations A new cross city metro style line will be created that runs from the north west to the south east of Melbourne linking the Sunbury line with the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines The line is also planned to eventually run to Melbourne Airport via the planned Melbourne Airport Rail link but that project has been delayed 145 The new line like similar projects the Elizabeth Line Sydney Metro and the Paris RER will be a hybrid suburban and rapid transit system running a high frequency rapid service in the inner city but also running trains to Melbourne s outer commuter suburbs 3 146 The five new city stations are underground and will feature 230 m 755 ft long platforms large concourses and full height platform screen doors a first for Melbourne 147 As part of the project a new fleet of 65 High Capacity Metro Trains have been ordered to add further capacity to the network the first of which entered service in 2020 These trains are the most advanced and highest capacity in Melbourne and will run on the Metro Tunnel corridor as 7 car trains They can be expanded to 10 car trains in the future with the new underground stations long enough to accommodate the extended trains A new stabling and maintenance depot was built in Pakenham East to house the new fleet 148 nbsp Geographic map showing the planned cross city rapid transit corridor created by the Metro Tunnel at its full extent including the proposed Airport Rail Link and short extension to Pakenham East Three of the new stations Arden Parkville and Anzac are cut and cover box designs and involved digging down to build the station 149 The two CBD stations State Library and Town Hall are mined stations beneath Swanston Street built using a unique trinocular construction method of three overlapping caverns dug by road headers and featuring high ceilings an arched vault design and 19 m 62 ft wide platforms 150 151 149 With the exception of Arden all of the stations feature multiple entrances Anzac features a direct tram train interchange with a large wooden canopy while Arden will anchor a major urban renewal project in Melbourne s inner north The two CBD stations will feature large transit oriented development and retail As part of the project a new third turnback platform will be built at West Footscray station High capacity signalling in the form of moving block communication based signalling technology will be installed along the Metro Tunnel corridor and on the Airport branch to allow trains every two minutes 152 153 This is the first time high capacity signalling has been installed on a legacy rail corridor in Australia 153 Station platforms were also extended along the corridor to allow for the new trains nbsp Rebuilt elevated Carnegie railway station on the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines which will form part of the Metro Tunnel corridor Along with the Metro Tunnel project works there are a number of associated infrastructure projects by the Victorian Government to upgrade the corridor and the wider rail system in Melbourne to rapid transit standards The Sunbury Line Upgrade project announced in the 2019 state budget is upgrading the corridor from the tunnel to Sunbury and includes platform extensions accessibility upgrades power and substation upgrades new train stabling and the removal of all level crossings on the Sunbury line to allow for High Capacity Metro Trains 154 The Cranbourne Line Upgrade is removing all remaining level crossings along the Cranbourne line and has duplicated 8 km 5 0 mi of track to allow higher frequency services on the branch 155 An extension of the Cranbourne line to Clyde is also planned though has not yet been funded by the government The Level Crossing Removal Project has removed a number of other level crossings on the future Metro Tunnel corridor including several on the Pakenham line and nine level crossings between Caulfield and Dandenong in which four stations were rebuilt and 9 km 5 6 mi of elevated rail constructed in 2017 156 The Pakenham line will also be extended a short distance with a new station built at Pakenham East near the new rail depot for the line 157 This new station is being delivered by the Level Crossing Removal Project Together these projects will establish a fully grade separated corridor with high capacity signalling capable of running frequent services through the new tunnel According to the project s business case it will allow an extra 39 000 passengers to travel in the peak period each day with a further 41 000 extra passengers if 10 car trains are introduced 3 Network changes EditThe Metro Tunnel will create a new cross city metro line when it connects the Sunbury Cranbourne and Pakenham lines As a result these lines will be removed from the City Loop and a major reorganisation of the network will occur According to plans released by the Department of Transport and Planning in 2018 the Frankston line will be returned to the City Loop and cease through routing with the Werribee and Williamstown lines 158 Instead the Sandringham line will through route with those lines via the Flinders Street Viaduct 158 The extra capacity will allow more peak services across the network particularly for the Craigieburn and Upfield lines which will no longer share a single loop track with the Sunbury line 159 nbsp Current Melbourne rail network nbsp Post Metro Tunnel network showing the reorganisation of linesThe 2016 project business case envisioned the tunnel including a newly electrified branch to Melton in the west 160 The business case planned for an initial 19 trains per hour during the peak running into the tunnel from the east and 18 from the west increasing to 21 from the east and 23 from the west under the extended program after the Melton branch was added 160 Since then this plan has been superseded by plans to run the Melbourne Airport rail link through the tunnel as a branch in the west In the 2022 23 state budget money was allocated to train and employ 300 extra train drivers and station staff to allow Metro Trains Melbourne to operate the tunnel and the increased services across the network in 2025 161 162 Tram network Edit nbsp The current Elizabeth Street tram terminus will become a through route under Metro Tunnel plans Relieving congestion on the busy Swanston Street tram corridor is a key goal of the Metro Tunnel project and the opening of the tunnel will also see some major changes to the tram network in the central city 3 Several tram connections and upgrades were funded as part of the project including new track along Park Street in South Melbourne and on Flinders Street in the CBD allowing trams to turn onto Flinders from the current tram terminus on Elizabeth Street 163 This will allow some trams routes to be directed away from Swanston Street towards the western end of the CBD more evenly balancing services in the central city and reducing reliance on the Elizabeth and Flinders corridors 3 The 2016 business case envisioned routes 5 and 64 being rerouted to Docklands via Park and Spencer Streets and Elizabeth Street trams continuing down Flinders Street to terminate outside the CBD at Melbourne Park and Jolimont 3 In 2017 new tram tracks were installed on Toorak Road West in South Yarra and trams were temporarily removed from Domain Road to allow construction of Anzac station at the same time tram routes 8 and 55 were combined to form the new route 58 163 164 Stations EditThe project involves construction of five new underground railway stations Arden Edit Main article Arden railway station Melbourne Arden station is to be located near the intersection of Arden and Laurens Streets in North Melbourne It is planned to allow for urban renewal of the formerly industrial suburb and is expected to serve some 25 000 residents once complete The station entrance will be located on Laurens Street between Queensberry and Arden streets to provide direct access to existing residential retail and commercial areas east of Laurens Street Provision will be made for an additional entrance at the western end of the station to service the Arden area as it develops in the future Arden Station will be within walking distance of the North Melbourne Recreation Centre Arden Street Oval and the existing route 57 tram 165 Parkville Edit Main article Parkville railway station Melbourne nbsp University Square and Grattan Street near the University of Melbourne site of the under construction Parkville stationParkville station is to be located on the intersection of Grattan Street and Royal Parade in Parkville in proximity to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and Melbourne University 166 The station will relieve pressure on north south tram routes and the congested 401 bus service between North Melbourne station and the university hospital precinct New tram stops are to be constructed as part of the project allowing for seamless tram and train interchanges The station will service the busy hospital and research precinct including the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre The station is expected to service 60 000 passengers each day in 2031 State Library Edit Main article State Library railway station nbsp State Library of Victoria nbsp Building 80 at RMIT University near the future State Library station entranceState Library station is to be located on the intersection of Swanston and La Trobe Streets in the Melbourne CBD above the existing Melbourne Central station This will allow for interchange opportunities between stations and existing lines and relieve pressure on Swanston Street tram routes 167 The station will service the northern end of the CBD as well as the State Library of Victoria and RMIT University The line will continue under Swanston Street running below the existing City Loop tunnels The station will serve up to 40 000 passengers once complete Town Hall Edit Main article Town Hall railway station Melbourne nbsp Melbourne s City Square which has been demolished for construction of Town Hall stationTown Hall station is to be located on the corner of Swanston and Flinders Streets with direct connections to Flinders Street station adding further relief to tram services and servicing the southern end of the CBD 168 The station will be near St Paul s Cathedral the Arts Precinct Southbank and Federation Square and have exits on Collins Street The line will proceed south running below the Yarra River and the Burnley and Domain tunnels The station is expected to serve some 55 000 passengers during peak periods Anzac Edit Main article Anzac railway station nbsp Domain Interchange 2004 site of the under construction Anzac stationAnzac station is to be located on St Kilda Road and Park Streets adjacent to the Domain Interchange with interchange opportunities with existing St Kilda Road tram services The station will service the Shrine of Remembrance the busy St Kilda Road office precinct the Royal Botanic Gardens and Melbourne Grammar School 169 The station is expected to serve approximately 14 500 passengers during peak periods Analysis and criticism EditNetwork capacity Edit The primary stated aim of the project is to increase capacity within the inner core of the metropolitan network as well as improving reliability and efficiency It aims to accomplish this by creating a single end to end metropolitan line between Sunshine in the west and Dandenong in the south east linking the existing Sunbury Cranbourne and Pakenham lines and providing them with a dedicated city centre route Because this re routing removes services from two City Loop tunnels more capacity will theoretically be available for the Werribee Williamstown Craigieburn Upfield Frankston and Sandringham lines According to official project estimates the result is a total capacity increase of 39 000 passengers in the city centre for each peak period 170 However the need for a new tunnel to increase capacity has been subject to criticism that capacity on the existing network is under utilised or hamstrung by operational inefficiencies since the project was originally proposed in Eddington s report Paul Mees in 2008 171 noted that the claim the new tunnel would allow 40 extra trains per hour through the city should be compared to an increase of 56 trains per hour by increasing line capacity to 24 trains per hour per line 80 of the theoretical 30 trains per hour allowed by the current signalling system reducing dwell times and other efficiencies such as terminating some trains at Flinders Street station rather than Southern Cross station Mees also criticised the proposal for absorbing rail investment at the expense of extending the network at its periphery On the other hand transport economist Chris Hale has argued that while the capacity increase offered by the tunnel is real and probably more significant than that offered by incremental upgrades to the existing network the project is the product of poor planning processes in the Victorian transport bureaucracy and consequently reflects a single issue approach to infrastructure which is inconsistent with contemporary best practice Hale contends that the tunnel s route which reinforces existing transport networks and focuses on the inner city as the single connection point of all transport exemplifies outmoded thinking and therefore achieves its primary aims while failing to accomplish more extensive benefits for a similar cost 172 Ultimately the business case for the Metro Tunnel considered high capacity signalling and other network upgrades as alternatives to the proposed route It concluded that when compared to the tunnel upgrading to HCS would produce inferior outcomes because of its limited capacity benefits and its failure to integrate improvement of the existing network with service to new parts of the central city Additionally the business case noted that by making incremental upgrades to the rail system without substantially altering its structure the opportunity for more reliable operations as a result of fully segregated lines would be lost 173 Swanston Street tram services Edit With the proposed route expected to run directly under Swanston Street and towards the south eastern suburbs the project will provide much needed relief to existing and overcrowded tram services that run from St Kilda Road into the CBD Currently St Kilda Road is the busiest tram thoroughfare in the world with up to 10 tram routes running into the CBD via Swanston Street The Melbourne Metro is expected to relieve this pressure by allowing commuters to catch the train into the Domain Interchange and CBD from either the north west or south eastern suburbs avoiding already congested tram routes In particular many of the existing tram routes that run through St Kilda Road terminate at Melbourne University which will be more easily accessible from the nearby Parkville station when the Melbourne Metro is complete Concerns existed over expected disruption along the Swanston Street corridor with former Premier Denis Napthine controversially describing the alignment of the tunnel as akin to the Berlin Wall which would tear the city in half for up to two years 174 However changes to engineering and construction plans allowed for tunneling rather than the cut and cover method of construction resulting in minimal disruption for trams pedestrians and traders along Swanston Street during construction 175 Further network expansion Edit In 2012 Public Transport Victoria the body charged with planning and coordination of public transport services in Victoria released the Metropolitan Network Development Plan It emphasised the need for the project as a precursor for other heavy rail expansion projects given current limitations on existing inner city infrastructure to cope with additional services running into the inner part of the network In particular rail lines to Doncaster Melbourne Airport and Rowville require additional inner core capacity to enable services to run on those lines into the CBD Jobs Edit The project is expected to employ up to 3 500 people during peak construction 176 The training program called MetroHub provides all training recruitment and project inductions for people working on the Tunnel and Stations work package 500 apprentices trainees and engineering cadets are expected to be a part of this program 177 South Yarra station Edit The project ruled out integration with major south eastern hub South Yarra station meaning it will be bypassed by trains using the new tunnel Passengers from the city on the tunnel s Dandenong line will not be able to transfer to the Sandringham line at South Yarra and passengers travelling towards the city on the Dandenong line will be required to change at Caulfield to pursue travel to South Yarra Pressure from the State Opposition and the Greens to include the station in the tunnel s design went unheeded 178 The Melbourne Metro Rail Authority has defended the plan saying the economic case for integration is poor requiring the building of a new hub and the acquisition of 114 properties including part of The Jam Factory at a cost of an extra 1 billion a business case estimate indicates a return of only 20c for every dollar spent on the station 179 Integration of South Yarra station into the project has been the subject of lobbying as a requirement for federal funding Cost and funding Edit A significant point of contention has been the relative cost of the project and the capacity of the State to afford up to 11 billion The former Abbott Federal Government had specifically ruled out funding urban rail projects across the country limiting funding options for the Melbourne Metro project and placed pressure on the State Government to fund the project with a mix of debt and private business investment While funding allocated by the Abbott Government for the now scrapped East West Link was specifically ruled out for use on urban rail projects in Melbourne 25 the former Turnbull government had removed this condition 180 Federal funding options for the project were realised by the former Abbott Government s Asset Recycling Program which matches 15 of the cost of any State Government asset that is sold to be used for infrastructure projects The sale of the Port of Melbourne by the Andrews 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12 May 2018 White Alex 5 August 2015 Two 9km tunnels to be bored under Yarra River for Melbourne Metro Rail project Herald Sun Retrieved 12 May 2018 Gordon Josh Cowie Tom Willingham Richard 22 September 2015 Hundreds of properties to be acquired for Metro Rail Project The Age Archived from the original on 12 May 2018 Retrieved 12 May 2018 Carey Richard Willingham Adam 21 October 2015 Melbourne Metro rail Tunnels to go deeper underground to keep trams running The Age Archived from the original on 6 December 2022 Retrieved 6 December 2022 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Tomazin Farrah 24 October 2015 Metro Rail Project digging deeper could cost more briefing note reveals The Age Archived from the original on 6 December 2022 Retrieved 6 December 2022 Gordon Josh 25 October 2015 Contracts on track to over 70m despite debate over Metro Rail project The Age Archived from the original on 14 May 2018 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Johnston Matt White Alex Dillane Tom 15 October 2015 Homes must go for tunnel Herald Sun p 7 Carey Adam 5 November 2015 Melbourne Metro to close busy city streets for up to three years including Domain Road The Age Archived from the original on 14 May 2018 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Johnston Matt 24 November 2015 Shifting phone power lines for Metro rail project to leave businesses without power Herald Sun Retrieved 14 May 2018 Build Victoria s Big 17 March 2022 Metro Tunnel Project Business Case Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 14 May 2022 Retrieved 2 June 2022 White Alex 18 January 2016 Drilling bore holes into Yarra River begins ahead of Melbourne Metro Rail Project Herald Sun Retrieved 14 May 2018 Carey Adam 18 November 2015 Private sector called on to fund multibillion dollar Melbourne Metro rail tunnel The Age Archived from the original on 14 May 2018 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Edwards Jean 23 February 2016 Victoria pleads for 4 5b in federal funding for Metro Rail project ABC News Archived from the original on 27 August 2016 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Carter Mark 24 February 2016 Melbourne Metro Rail project bidders shortlisted International Railway Journal Archived from the original on 14 May 2018 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Willingham Richard Gordon Josh Preiss Benjamin 27 April 2016 Victorian budget 2016 State to fund 10 9b Melbourne Metro Rail project The Age Archived from the original on 17 February 2018 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Gordon Josh 3 May 2016 Budget 2016 Victoria short changed again on infrastructure spending The Age Archived from the original on 14 May 2018 Retrieved 14 May 2018 Major work to begin next year melbournemetro vic gov au Archived from the original on 25 June 2016 Retrieved 22 June 2016 It s official Major works on the Metro Tunnel will begin next year www premier vic gov au 22 June 2016 Archived from the original on 10 July 2016 Retrieved 22 June 2016 Willingham Richard 11 August 2016 Melbourne Metro Six tunnel boring machines needed for 6 billion build The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Anderson Stephanie 11 August 2016 Six 100 metre long machines to dig their way under Melbourne for rail project ABC News Archived from the original on 30 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Johanson Simon 16 August 2016 Melbourne City Square compulsorily acquired by Metro Rail The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Dow Aisha 5 September 2016 Metro tunnel works vibrations not so good for St Paul s historic organ say experts The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Carey Adam 9 October 2016 Fears Federation Square will be rocked to its foundations by rail tunnel works The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Preiss Benjamin 27 November 2016 Melbourne Metro Rail Sections of major CBD roads to be closed up to five years The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Metro Tunnel PPP Project Summary PDF Government of Victoria Archived PDF from the original on 28 March 2020 Retrieved 5 January 2020 Dow Aisha Lucas Clay 16 January 2017 CBD roads to be closed for years as Melbourne Metro Tunnel construction begins The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Willingham Richard 19 January 2017 Melbourne Metro to boost Australian economy Infrastructure Australia The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Dow Aisha 25 January 2017 Melbourne Metro Tunnel St Kilda Road campaigners push for new route The Age Archived from the original on 19 June 2018 Retrieved 18 June 2018 Federal Government tries to save St Kilda Rd trees from Metro Rail project ABC News 10 February 2017 Archived from the original on 26 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Carey Adam Preiss Benjamin 7 February 2017 Liberals make another attempt to include South Yarra station in Melbourne Metro The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 White Alex 9 March 2017 South Yarra station bid fizzles Herald Sun p 3 Preiss Benjamin 3 April 2017 City Square shuts down as work begins on Metro Tunnel The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Redrup Yolanda 9 April 2017 Bids in for Victoria s 10 9 billion Metro Tunnel project Australian Financial Review Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Lillebuen Steve 16 July 2017 Metro Tunnel Melbourne s changing face revealed as consortium named for 11 billion project The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Carey Adam 18 July 2017 Bombardier wins 1b contract to fit Metro Tunnel with high capacity signalling The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Bombardier and CPB Contractors win 1bn contract for Melbourne Metro Tunnel signalling Global Rail News Global Rail News 19 July 2017 Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Hasiotis Stamatina Greigeritsch Isabell 28 August 2017 Metro Tunnel New train stations should be named after location say transport users The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Now arriving at Winterfell station Game of Thrones author offers Melbourne Metro ideas ABC News 12 September 2017 Archived from the original on 4 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Bowden Ebony 25 October 2017 Barak Kirner and Chloe firm in station naming race no joy for Dusty or Winterfell The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Slattery Madeleine 29 November 2017 Confusion reigns as names of Melbourne s Metro Tunnel stations unveiled 9 News Melbourne Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Steve Lillebuen Jacks Timna 29 November 2017 Metro Tunnel New train station names revealed The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Rooney Kieran 26 January 2020 Station renamed to avoid mix ups Herald Sun p 17 Rats take to streets due to Metro Tunnel construction ABC News 8 November 2017 Archived from the original on 30 April 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Butt Craig 6 December 2017 Train now standing at Town Hall station gives passersby a building sight The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Jacks Timna 18 December 2017 Coalition flags building South Yarra interchange if they form government The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Carter Mark 18 December 2017 Final Melbourne metro tunnel contracts signed International Railway Journal Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Jacks Timna 14 February 2018 Final blow tree felling begins on St Kilda Road The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Jacks Timna 20 February 2018 Melbourne Metro a year ahead of schedule Premier says The Age Archived from the original on 8 January 2023 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Miletic Daniella 10 April 2018 Metro Tunnel construction may affect treatment machines at cancer centre The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Jacks Timna 12 April 2018 Manchester Unity building warns of Metro Tunnel damage The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Jacks Timna 17 April 2018 South Yarra station set for a 12 million makeover The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Carter Mark 26 April 2018 Victoria mulls Melbourne Geelong high speed options International Railway Journal Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Sweeping archways open spaces for Melbourne s new landmark stations ABC News 30 May 2018 Archived from the original on 30 May 2018 Retrieved 30 May 2018 Turbet Hanna Mills 30 May 2018 Melbourne Metro Tunnel station designs revealed The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Jacks Timna 6 June 2018 How much time will you save due to the Metro Tunnel This much The Age Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 24 June 2018 Towell Noel 30 April 2019 Commuters warned of May misery with replacement buses ready to roll The Age Archived from the original on 15 July 2019 Retrieved 15 July 2019 Towell Noel 5 July 2019 More transport misery to hit Melbourne commuters in July and August The Age Archived from the original on 15 July 2019 Retrieved 15 July 2019 Massive Metro Tunnel Boring Machines Coming Together Premier of Victoria 5 June 2019 Archived from the original on 7 June 2019 Retrieved 15 July 2019 Our first tunnel boring machine breakthrough Metro Tunnel Official 23 February 2020 Archived from the original on 25 February 2020 Retrieved 25 February 2020 First section of tunnel completed Metro Tunnel Official 14 April 2020 Archived from the original on 25 February 2020 Retrieved 20 April 2020 Millie starts digging Archived from the original on 27 April 2020 Retrieved 28 April 2020 Building The Metro Tunnel And Supporting Jobs Through The Crisis Archived from the original on 12 May 2020 Retrieved 29 April 2020 ALICE AND MILLIE TUNNELLING EAST Archived from the original on 21 September 2020 Retrieved 26 May 2020 RED TBM RELAUNCHES Archived from the original on 21 September 2020 Retrieved 26 May 2020 Tunneling All Systems Go On The Metro Tunnel Archived from the original on 11 June 2020 Retrieved 11 June 2020 TRAFFIC CHANGES IN THE CBD Archived from the original on 7 August 2020 Retrieved 25 February 2020 Jacks Timna 24 May 2021 Boring machines finish digging Melbourne s Metro Tunnel The Age Archived from the original on 4 June 2021 Retrieved 4 June 2021 Major tunnelling works complete as all four TBMs reach final stop metrotunnel vic gov au Archived from the original on 4 June 2021 Retrieved 4 June 2021 a b Jacks Timna 24 May 2021 Boring machines finish digging Melbourne s Metro Tunnel The Age Archived from the original on 4 June 2021 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 25 February 2022 Metro Tunnel on track as first rail arrives Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 28 March 2022 Retrieved 2 June 2022 Build Victoria s Big 30 March 2023 Tracks laid in the Metro Tunnel Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 31 March 2023 Retrieved 31 March 2023 Build Victoria s Big 30 March 2023 Rail Installation Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 31 March 2023 Retrieved 31 March 2023 Updated Melbourne Metro Tunnel station design unveiled Architecture Australia 10 August 2021 a b Build Victoria s Big 3 November 2021 Town Hall Station milestone heralds final stages of excavation Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 3 March 2022 Exploring State Library Station s trinocular design Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 17 May 2022 Retrieved 12 January 2023 State Library Station taking shape below Swanston St www cbdnews com au Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 5 May 2021 North Melbourne s new Arden Station begins to take shape Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 9 November 2021 Arden Station arches taking shape Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 14 January 2022 First acoustic shed to come down as Metro Tunnel goes next level Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 13 July 2022 New look for Swanston Street as tower cranes go up Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 a b Build Victoria s Big 20 October 2022 Anzac Station canopy takes shape Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 18 November 2022 St Kilda Road changes for drivers Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 2 November 2022 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 21 December 2022 New Anzac Station tram stop open for passengers Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 4 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Chan Ray 23 November 2022 St Kilda Road tram realignment works Rail Express Archived from the original on 12 January 2023 Retrieved 12 January 2023 Build Victoria s Big 11 May 2023 Work on Town Hall Station powers ahead under City Square Victoria s Big Build Retrieved 11 October 2023 Build Victoria s Big 25 July 2023 Test trains enter the Metro Tunnel Victoria s Big Build Retrieved 12 August 2023 Build Victoria s Big 16 August 2023 Test trains ramp up in the Metro Tunnel Victoria s Big Build Retrieved 11 October 2023 Daniel Andrews rides through the Metro Tunnel The Age 26 September 2023 Retrieved 11 October 2023 Lucas Clay Waters Cara 26 September 2023 Right intent wrong projects Dan s infrastructure report card The Age Retrieved 11 October 2023 a b Build Victoria s Big 2 October 2023 High Capacity Signalling arrives in Melbourne Victoria s Big Build Retrieved 11 October 2023 Ilanbey Sumeyya 17 May 2023 Melbourne Airport Rail workers redeployed as project officially paused The Age Retrieved 24 June 2023 Boss of London s newest train line has a warning for Australia Australian Financial Review 21 May 2022 Archived from the original on 29 May 2022 Retrieved 29 May 2022 Build Victoria s Big 7 April 2022 Platform screen doors Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 30 June 2022 Retrieved 16 May 2022 1 100 Jobs With 65 New Trains Built In Victoria For Victoria Premier of Victoria 29 November 2017 Archived from the original on 29 November 2017 Retrieved 17 May 2022 a b Build Victoria s Big 3 November 2021 Station construction Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 17 May 2022 Retrieved 17 May 2022 Build Victoria s Big 3 March 2022 Exploring State Library Station s trinocular design Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 17 May 2022 Retrieved 17 May 2022 Final phases of metro excavations in Melbourne www tunneltalk com Archived from the original on 19 May 2022 Retrieved 17 May 2022 Build Victoria s Big 18 March 2022 High Capacity Signalling Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 13 December 2022 Retrieved 17 May 2022 a b High capacity signalling takes metro tunnel to new heights Infrastructure Magazine 25 May 2021 Archived from the original on 19 May 2022 Retrieved 17 May 2022 Build Victoria s Big 11 May 2022 Sunbury Line Upgrade Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 17 May 2022 Retrieved 16 May 2022 Cranbourne Line Upgrade Level Crossing Removal Project levelcrossings vic gov au Archived from the original on 22 March 2022 Retrieved 16 May 2022 Caulfield to Dandenong level crossing removal project design Level Crossing Removal Project levelcrossings vic gov au Archived from the original on 29 March 2022 Retrieved 16 May 2022 Location identified for Pakenham East Station Level Crossing Removal Project levelcrossings vic gov au 18 February 2021 Archived from the original on 17 May 2022 Retrieved 16 May 2022 a b Victoria Department of Transport and Planning 2018 Growing our rail network 2018 2025 PDF Archived PDF from the original on 17 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 Build Victoria s Big 14 March 2023 Benefits for your train line Victoria s Big Build Archived from the original on 21 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 a b Government of Victoria Metro Tunnel 2016 Melbourne Metro Tunnel Business Case Appendix 4 Proposed Service Plan PDF Archived PDF from the original on 8 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 Towell Paul Sakkal Noel 3 May 2022 Treasurer says big transport projects close to tapping out The Age Archived from the original on 17 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Switching on the Big Build Victorian Budget 22 23 www budget vic gov au Archived from the original on 17 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 a b Metro Tunnel To Transform Melbourne s Tram Network Premier of Victoria www premier vic gov au Archived from the original on 17 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 Preiss Benjamin 12 July 2017 Domain Road closed for five years for Melbourne Metro Tunnel construction The Age Archived from the original on 17 March 2023 Retrieved 17 March 2023 Construction in North Melbourne Metro Tunnel Archived from the original on 14 August 2020 Retrieved 29 April 2020 Metro Tunnel Parkville Station Archived from the original on 16 April 2020 Retrieved 4 May 2020 Metro Tunnel State Library Archived from the original on 19 April 2020 Retrieved 4 May 2020 Metro Tunnel Town Hall Archived from the original on 19 April 2020 Retrieved 4 May 2020 Metro Tunnel Anzac Archived from the original on 16 April 2020 Retrieved 4 May 2020 Benefits of the project Metro Tunnel Rail Projects Victoria 23 January 2018 Archived from the original on 2 May 2018 Retrieved 2 May 2018 Mees 2008 Hale Chris December 2015 Planning Melbourne metro Why every centimetre and every dollar counts Planning News 41 11 16 17 Appendix 1 Capital Investment Options Metro Tunnel Business Case PDF Melbourne Melbourne Metro Rail Authority 2016 p 11 Archived PDF from the original on 17 March 2018 Retrieved 5 May 2018 Willingham Richard 17 February 2014 Swanston Street rip up for Melbourne Metro rail akin to Berlin Wall Napthine Theage com au Archived from the original on 28 June 2015 Retrieved 14 May 2015 Willingham Richard 21 October 2015 Melbourne Metro Rail project Trams to keep running along Swanston Street The Age Fairfax Archived from the original on 25 June 2016 Retrieved 21 October 2015 Frequently asked questions Dtpli vic gov au 1 May 2015 Archived from the original on 1 April 2015 Retrieved 14 May 2015 Jobs Metrohub Archived from the original on 12 May 2020 Retrieved 30 April 2020 Carey Adam 15 May 2015 New underground station for South Yarra ruled out in rail tunnel plans The Age Fairfax Archived from the original on 19 November 2015 Retrieved 19 November 2015 Gordon Josh Willingham Richard Preiss Benjamin 22 October 2015 Federal rail cash under a cloud over South Yarra station stoush The Age Fairfax Archived from the original on 24 October 2015 Retrieved 19 November 2015 Preiss Benjamin 4 June 2015 Federal government opens door to funding Melbourne Metro rail tunnel Theage com au Archived from the original on 23 November 2015 Retrieved 5 November 2015 Port sale standoff threatens to derail Andrews government s transport promises Theage com au 9 April 2015 Archived from the original on 13 May 2015 Retrieved 14 May 2015 External links EditProject website Railpage Detailed analysis and commentary on the project Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Metro Tunnel amp oldid 1179748858, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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