Construction work is underway on the Metro Tunnel project’s new North Melbourne Station, one of five underground stations that will eventually be built in the CBD.
Preparation work has begun for the construction of walls reaching 30-metre-deep underground, which, once established, will enable the excavation of hundreds of thousands of tonnes of rock and soil from the site in accordance with the cut-and-cover method (i.e. excavation of the station box from the bottom up, with a roof slab covering the build site).
The excavated space will house the new station, resting up to 20 metres underground and featuring platforms longer than 225 metres. The station entrance will be located on Laurens Street, between Queensberry and Arden streets.
The North Melbourne Station site will also support he construction of the western section of the Metro Tunnel, with boring machines (TBMs) to be launched there for their dig towards the western tunnel entrance in Kensington and the new Parkville Station.
“The start of North Melbourne station construction marks another major milestone for this mammoth project,” state transport minister Jacinta Allan said.
The four other stations to be constructed for the Metro Tunnel project are Parkville Station (located below Grattan Street between Royal Parade and Leicester Street), State Library Station (located under Swanston Street, between La Trobe Street and Franklin Street), Town Hall Station (located under Swanston Street, between Flinders Street and Collins Street), and Anzac Station (located under St Kilda Road near the intersection of Albert Road and Domain Road).
To provide the 50,000 concrete segments that will line the project’s twin nine-kilometre tunnels, a $18 million manufacturing facility at Deer Park in Melbourne’s west is soon to be constructed and begin operating this year.
The concrete segments will be installed by the TBMs as they carry out their excavations, creating a watertight lining for the tunnels.
All five stations will be completed in time for the expected opening of the Metro Tunnel in 2025.