Summary
Images
Videos

Image showing the inside of one of the tunnels

Stage 1 tunnels

Tunnelling finished in January 2016 on Australia’s longest railway tunnels – twin 15km tunnels from Bella Vista to Epping as part of Stage 1 of Sydney Metro.

TBM1 Elizabeth final breakthrough

TBM1 Elizabeth breaking through at Cherrybrook Station.

TBM2 Florence removal at Cherrybrook

TBM3 Florence final breakthrough at Cherrybrook

TBM3 Florence final breakthrough at Cherrybrook

TBM3 Florence final breakthrough at Cherrybrook, after finishing digging the Sydney Metro Northwest tunnels

Cherrybrook Station construction site

TBM1 Elizabeth resurfaces at Cherrybrook

TBM1 Elizabeth resurfaces at Cherrybrook

TBM1 Elizabeth cutterhead is retrieved from Cherrybrook

TBM1 Elizabeth cutterhead is retrieved from Cherrybrook

TBM3 Isabelle launch at Cherrybrook

Bella Vista Precast Facility

Inside the tunnels at Bella Vista during construction

Inside the tunnels at Bella Vista during construction

TBM1 Elizabeth begins tunnelling from Bella Vista

TBM1 Elizabeth begins tunnelling from Bella Vista

TBM1 Elizabeth begins tunnelling from Bella Vista

Aerial view of Bella Vista Station construction site

Aerial view of Bella Vista Station construction site

TBM1 Elizabeth and TBM2 Florence started their journey to Cherrybrook Station from here.

Pre-cast facility at Bella Vista where concrete tunnel segments were made

Pre-cast facility at Bella Vista where concrete tunnel segments were made

Segment stacks at dusk

Florence being assembled at Bella Vista construction site

TBM2 Florence being assembled at Bella Vista construction site

Spoil shed at Bella Vista

Crushed rock from tunnelling was stored overnight at a spoil shed in Bella Vista.

Showground Station construction box

Tunnel Boring Machine cutter head

Inside the tunnel at Bella Vista

Entry to the tunnels at Bella Vista Station

Entry to the tunnels at Bella Vista Station during construction

Concrete segment

Lifting a tunnel concrete segment

TBM2 Florence is retrieved from Cherrybrook

TBM2 Florence cutterhead retrieval

TBM2 Florence is retrieved from Cherrybrook

Hills Showground Station box under construction

Hills Showground Station box under construction

Castle Hill Station box

Epping Services Facility construction site

Epping Services Facility construction site

Tunnel Boring Machine 2 Florence cutterhead removal

Tunnel Boring Machine 2 Florence cutterhead removal

Tunnel Boring Machine 1 Elizabeth - breakthrough Hills Showground

Tunnel Boring Machine 1 Elizabeth - breakthrough Hills Showground

TBM2 Florence traversing Norwest Station box

TBM2 Florence traversing Norwest Station box

TBM2 Florence at Norwes

Concrete segments used to line the tunnels

TBM4 Maria breaks through into Epping

TBM4 Maria started tunnelling from Cherrybrook Station

TBM4 Maria started tunnelling from Cherrybrook Station

A specialised 4WD took tunnel workers from the surface, to the tunnel boring machines underground

A specialised 4WD took tunnel workers from the surface, to the tunnel boring machines underground

A highly specialised 4WD was used to take tunnel workers from the surface, deep underground to the tunnel boring machines.

TBM2 Florence breaks through at Norwest Station

TBM2 Florence breaks through at Norwest Station

TBM being delivered at Newcastle dock

TBM1 Elizabeth breaks through to Norwest

TBM1 Elizabeth breaks through to Norwest

TBM1 Elizabeth at Norwest Station

TBM4 Maria cutterhead is lifted from Epping

TBM4 Maria cutterhead is lifted from Epping

TBM1 Elizabeth arrives in Australia

TBM1 Elizabeth, the first of four massive tunnel boring machines arrived in Australia and is being delivered in parts and reassembled in Sydney’s northwest.

Castle Hill crossover cavern construction

Castle Hill crossover cavern construction

Looking into Australia's longest railway tunnels

Looking into Australia's longest railway tunnels

Epping Services Facility

TBM3 Isabelle breaks through at Epping Station

TBM1 Elizabeth starts tunnelling

Castle Hill Station construction

TBM1 Elizabeth arrives in Australia in July 2014

TBM1 Elizabeth arrives in Australia in July 2014

TBM1 Elizabeth, the first of our four mega tunnel boring machines arrives at the Port of Newcastle in July 2014

TBM4 Maria cutterhead is retrieved at Epping

TBM4 Maria cutterhead is retrieved at Epping

TBM2 Florence breaks through at Castle Hill

TBM2 Florence breaks through at Castle Hill

Inside Sydney Metro Northwest’s cross-over cavern at Castle Hill

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Inside Sydney Metro Northwest’s cross-over cavern at Castle Hill 00:00

As part of Sydney Metro Northwest (formerly the North West Rail Link) a cross-over cavern has been constructed at Castle Hill to ensure the reliability of metro rail services. The cavern is a major engineering feat and is one of the largest excavations in shale in Sydney measuring 160m long, 23m wide and up to 17m high. In the event of service disruptions or maintenance in one tunnel, the cavern will allow trains to change tracks underground.

TBM1 Elizabeth breaks through at Hills Showground

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TBM1 Elizabeth breaks through at Hills Showground 00:00

Tunnelling on Sydney Metro Northwest (formerly the North West Rail Link) passed the one-third mark on 26 May 2015 with more than 12km of Australia’s longest railway tunnels completed by four Tunnel Boring Machines.

End of tunnelling at Cherrybrook for Sydney Metro Northwest

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End of tunnelling at Cherrybrook for Sydney Metro Northwest 00:01:14

30 km of tunnels in 3 minutes: Sydney Metro North West

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30 km of tunnels in 3 minutes: Sydney Metro North West 00:03:27

TBM chase at Castle Hill - Sydney Metro Northwest

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TBM chase at Castle Hill - Sydney Metro Northwest 00:00

Watch tunnel boring machines Elizabeth and Florence race through Castle Hill.

Stage 1: Northwest stations

Stage 2: City & Southwest stations

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