K Rd factsheet

Karangahape Station Utility Relocation Works

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FACT SHEET

The Link Alliance is delivering the main stations and tunnels contract for the City Rail Link (CRL) project, which will double the capacity of the rail network when it opens in 2024 to carry up to 54,000 passengers an hour.

As part of early works, the Link Alliance needs to investigate and relocate underground utilities to facilitate construction of the architecturally-designed Karangahape Station, which will have entrances on Mercury Lane and Beresford Square.

This work will take place before the start of construction on the Karangahape Station in 2020.

Karangahape Station - Mercury Lane entrance

What’s happening now The Link Alliance is currently undertaking a programme of investigations in Beresford Square, Pitt Street and Mercury Lane to pinpoint the location of existing underground services to help design their relocation.

By confirming our assumptions about where exactly the utilities lie, we de-risk the utility diversion works by providing a safer and more robust design for the station construction. We anticipate there will be approximately two day’s work at each investigation site, with some noise from concrete cutting, minor excavation and a Hydrovac machine (which sucks ground material away from the underground services).

Noise mats will help buffer ground-floor businesses and pedestrians from work-related noise.

Upcoming utility relocation works We are planning to start relocating utility services, such as electricity, gas, communications, water, stormwater and wastewater, in November this year (pending the outcome of the utility investigation and planning processes). These relocations will take place along parts of Beresford Square, Pitt Street and Mercury Lane and involve the formation of temporary trenches within footpaths to allow for the utilities to be relocated. We need to move the services because they are within the construction footprint and it’s much safer to build the station with all of them out of the way.

Concept design for the Beresford Square entrance

We anticipate the relocations will take between four and eight months to complete, depending on the outcome of the initial utility investigations. The work will be undertaken in stages to minimise the length of time spent outside each business.

We will maintain property access (both pedestrian and vehicular). At times we may need to re-route pedestrians around our work sites but we will use wayfinding signage to help them find and access your business. We will also use water-filled barriers and temporary fencing wherever possible to maintain visibility for businesses and special acoustic mats to buffer ground-floor businesses from work-related noise.

Managing the impacts of our work We are preparing a suite of management plans for Council approval that set out how we will manage the effects of our work on people and the environment. We are seeking your

Karangahape Station Utility Relocation Works FACT SHEET

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We are seeking input to the Social Impact and Business Disruption plan (SIBD) from those located within the vicinity of our work and would like to know more about how business operations so that we can minimise the impacts of much as practical.

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input to the Social Impact and Business Disruption plan (SIBD) as someone who will be within the vicinity of our work and would like to know more about how your business operates so that we can minimise the impacts as much as practicable.

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What’s coming up in the future When we start the utility relocation works, we will permanently close Beresford Square (between Pitt Street and Samoa House Lane) to general traffic. This means that vehicles will no longer be able to turn out of Beresford Square into Pitt Street. The on-street parking in this area will also need to be removed at this time. However, Beresford Square will remain open to pedestrians and cyclists and we will keep the square as clean, bright and attractive as we can to ensure people have every reason to continue supporting local businesses through the construction period.

At the end of 2019, the first Karangahape station construction crew will set-up site on the former Wilson’s carpark land in Beresford Square. In early 2020 we will dismantle the old Station Bar building in the middle of the square before starting the ground support works for the station entrance at this location. By the second quarter of 2020, we’re expecting the main construction work to begin. This will include the installation of diaphragm walls and piles to provide ground support for the underground station and the access shaft to the mined platform tunnels.

We regret that we will need to remove the existing trees in the square but we will be replacing them with new ones once the station is built. We are also working with Auckland Council to find a new location for the public toilet that is currently located on the Pitt Street/Beresford Square intersection.

The ground slab construction will commence the second half of 2020. Once it’s down, excavation and concrete works will head underground, until the construction of the station’s superstructure starts on the surface. That is anticipated from 2021 to 2023.

Towards the end of 2019, we expect to start demolition of the City Rail Link-owned buildings and the Mercury Plaza at the bottom of Mercury and East Street to clear the area for future station construction. Demolition is expected to take four to six months but we’ll be able to better confirm timings once asbestos investigation and removal works are completed in these buildings.

The demolition area will be safely fenced off for the duration of these works and large excavators will work on site to take the buildings down. Noise mats will help buffer the noise and water will be used for dust control and to wash truck wheels before they leave site. Mercury Lane and East Street will remain open to traffic but may be reduced to one lane at times. Some pedestrian diversions may be required. We will retain access to all properties in the area, including the Wilson carpark.

Where to go for more information We’ll be adding more information about the upcoming works to the City Rail Link website at CityRailLink.co.nz.

This includes information on construction progress, dates for upcoming works and details on expected impacts.

There is a page dedicated to Karangahape Station works.

If you have any questions or concerns about the proposed works in the Karangahape area, please call 0800 CRL TALK and choose option 4. Alternatively, for queries relating specifically to the Karangahape Station area works, you can email the Link Alliance’s Karangahape Station team on karangahape@linkalliance.co.nz.

We have set up a Karangahape Info Hub located in the old Station Bar building in the centre of Beresford Square. The Hub is open at select times on weekdays and weekends for your convenience.