Tunnelling on Sydney Metro West, which was paused for several weeks as the TBM approached the Telstra Building, resumed yesterday.
In a statement to T&TI, Sydney Metro said it was aware of the matters associated with the Telstra Building at 213 Church Street prior to awarding the Western Tunnelling package contract in 2022. The Gamuda Australia and Laing O’Rourke Consortium responsible for tunnelling was also aware before commencing work.
“Tunnelling under CBD environments like Parramatta, which have high-rise commercial buildings alongside heritage properties, is complex. It is a normal part of safely and responsibly excavating tunnels to review design and construction methodologies during the project to ensure both the tunnel and nearby properties are protected,” a Sydney Metro spokesperson said.
“This pause to tunnelling over recent weeks at Parramatta does not affect the Sydney Metro West target opening of 2032 and there has been no change to the project budget due to this issue.”
The spokesperson added that excavation had been completed on approximately 80% of the 24km Metro West tunnels and the first TBM was expected to break through at the Parramatta station site “shortly”.
The Sydney Metro West project is a new 24km underground metro that will double rail capacity between Parramatta and the Sydney CBD.
