The Sydney Metro has achieved a major milestone in the construction of Central Station.
Crews have reached the bottom of the new Sydney Metro Station box, 27 metres below ground level.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Minister for Transport and Roads Andrew Constance have visited the site.
“This has been an extraordinary engineering and construction achievement, delivering new Metro in the heart of our busiest railway station, while train services continued right around us,” Berejiklian said.
Achievement of this milestone comes after work was fast tracked at Central Station last year, due to reduced commuter numbers in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Right now, around 5000 people are working on Sydney Metro and about 50,000 will have worked on the City & Southwest project by the time services start in 2024,” she said.
Constance said the two underground Metro platforms at Central are being built differently to other Sydney Metro stations.
“We’re building this brand new Metro station at Central from the top down rather than bottom up, to deliver the platforms as quickly as possible while minimising the impact to commuters,” he said
“The two tunnel boring machines did not stop at Central but kept tunnelling through, which meant the final stage of excavating the station box was to smash through the twin tunnel sections from above using 14 excavators.”
So far 280,000 tonnes of crushed rock has been removed from the station box.
Excavation is near completion on the Central Walk underground link, it is now 75 per cent finished and is set to open in stages next year.
The Northern Concourse roof construction is also progressing, with the 460 tonne steel structure complete. Now, more than 500 louvres, made in Kurri Kurri, are being installed on the roof and will help with air flow once in place.
The Sydney Metro City & Southwest project will be complete by 2024.
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