Dig done: Landmark Sydney Metro West tunnels carved out beneath the city

Sydney Metro West has reached a major milestone, with its landmark twin tunnels from Westmead to Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD now fully carved out deep below the city. 

After a 34-month, around-the-clock effort, tunnelling reached the finish line with tunnel boring machine (TBM) Jessie’s smashing entrance through solid rock into the future Hunter Street Station.

This milestone also marks the completion of Sydney Metro’s mammoth tunnelling program. Across four projects, including Sydney Metro North West, City, Western Sydney Airport and West, 128-kilometres of new metro tunnel has been built, with 19 TBMs excavating 14.7 million tonnes of earth to carve out the brand-new metro tunnels.

For Sydney Metro West alone, more than 22,900 people and six tunnel boring machines powered the colossal underground build to deliver Australia’s longest rail tunnels at 24 kilometres long.

TBM Jessie’s breakthrough follows the arrival of TBM Ruby at Hunter Street at the end of last year. The mega machines spent 21 months building the 2.3-kilometre tunnels from The Bays, via Pyrmont and below Darling Harbour, to reach their final destination at Hunter Street. 

When city-shaping Sydney Metro West services start in 2032, the tunnels will take passengers below busy city streets in record time, including: 

• An end-to-end trip from Westmead to the Sydney CBD in just over 20 minutes.  
• Sydney Olympic Park to Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD - 15 minutes          
• Westmead to Sydney Olympic Park – 7 minutes          
• The Bays to Sydney Olympic Park – 11 minutes          
• Pyrmont to Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD – 2 minutes          

With tunnelling finished, the focus for the project will soon shift to tunnel fit out including the laying of tracks which is expected to begin by the end of the year. 

At the Hunter Street site, the team now has a huge logistical operation ahead as they prepare to disassemble the TBMs and bring each up in 16 large pieces from 27-metres below ground. The TBMs will then be moved through the city centre – an undertaking that will happen deep in the night to ensure minimal disruption.