Construction of the Mitchell Light Rail stop in Canberra’s inner north has begun, with utility service relocations, underboring, and geotechnical works the first to get underway.
ACT Minister for Transport Chris Steel said that having completed design and planning stages, major construction can get underway.
“By early next year we will be ready to crane in large parts of the stop, much of which is being pre-fabricated by a local firm offsite to minimise disruption to the local community and existing light rail passengers,” he said.
“All up we expect the construction (on and off site) to take about seven months, with Canberra’s 14th light rail stop due to become operational in the second half of 2021.”
The stop will service the Mitchell industrial area and will be at the corner of Flemington Road and Sandford Street. The station will be an island stop, with access via a signalised road crossing.
“I know that the construction of this new stop has been highly anticipated by the business community here in Mitchell and that this will give people more options to visit the area,” said Steel.
“The start of construction on the Mitchell light rail stop will create local jobs in the construction phase as well as supporting existing and emerging businesses in Mitchell and support the development of the future suburb of Kenny.”
To accommodate construction activities, light rail services from Gungahlin to EPIC and Racecourse stops in January and for a short period in late February or early March will be replaced by buses.
Once complete, a journey from Mitchell to the city will take 15 minutes by light rail, and the trip to Gungahlin will take about nine minutes.
The Mitchell light rail stop was one of the projects funded by the federal government’s $1.5 billion infrastructure funding package to stimulate the economy following COVID-19. The stop is jointly funded by the federal and ACT governments, with each contributing $6 million.