Melbourne’s massive $11 billion Metro Tunnel project will create 7000 jobs – 2,000 more than previously expected – the Victorian government has claimed.
Speaking from Spotswood’s Rail Centre, premier Daniel Andrews said the jobs figures included positions for 500 apprentices, trainees and engineering cadets who will work on the project.
Moreover, 65 per cent of the project is to be delivered by local small and medium sized businesses.
“The Metro Tunnel is the biggest ever public transport project ever built in Victoria, and it will need a record number of Victorian workers and businesses to get the job done,” premier Andrews said.
Labor member for Footscray Marsha Thomson welcomed the provision of apprenticeship and trainee positions, saying it would provide much needed experience to young workers.
“The Metro Tunnel will give hundreds of young Victorians and people re-skilling a start in their new career, giving them the skills and experience they need,” she said.
According to Andrews, over 1,000 people have been employed on the project so far, with preliminary works already underway.
The project will reportedly exceed local content targets: the new tunnels and underground stations will be built from 88 per cent locally-sourced material, including 93 per cent of steel used.
A new pre-cast factory will be built in Melbourne’s west to produce thousands of pre-cast concrete segments to line the project’s two 9-kilometre tunnels running under the city. Fabrication work packages are to be established in the Latrobe Valley and other regional areas, boosting employment in the region.
Major construction works for the Metro Tunnel are due to begin next year and the government expects the project to be complete by 2026. It will consist of two tunnels running between Kensington and South Yarra, connecting the Sunbury and Cranbourne/Pakenham lines, and 5 new underground stations.
“This is the project Victoria needs – creating thousands of jobs and more trains, more often right across Melbourne,” Andrews said.