NEWS
MAJOR SYDNEY METRO TUNNELLING PACKAGE AWARDED A consortium between Gamuda Australia and Laing O’Rourke has been appointed by the New South Wales Government to deliver the $2.16 billion Western Tunnelling Package for the Sydney Metro West project. The project will deliver a new direct, 24-kilometre underground rail connection between the CBDs of Parramatta and Sydney, with stations confirmed at Westmead, Parramatta, Sydney Olympic Park, North Strathfield, Burwood North, Five Dock, The Bays, Pyrmont and Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD. The project’s tunnelling work has been structured into three packages, with the Central Package awarded to an Acciona and Ferrovial Joint Venture in July last year. The remaining two tenderers – John Holland, CPB Contractors and Ghella Australia Joint Venture and Gamuda and Laing O’Rourke Joint Venture
– were bidding for the Western Tunnelling Package. Sydney Metro has also begun the process to appoint its third major tunnelling contractor for the Eastern Tunnelling, with three consortia shortlisted earlier this year. This contract for tunnelling between The Bays and Hunter Street in the Sydney CBD is expected to be awarded by late 2022. The scope for Western Package includes
excavation and construction of nine kilometres of twin tunnels between Westmead and Sydney Olympic Park. Sydney Metro West will create more than 10,000 direct new jobs and 70,000 indirect jobs, with many of these jobs generated by this major contract. Early works will commence on the Western Tunnelling Package within weeks, with tunnelling scheduled to start late 2023. Artist’s impression of the Westmead metro station.
QUEENSLAND GOVERNMENT TO FUND FASTER RAIL PROJECT AHEAD OF OLYMPICS The Queensland Government has committed an just over $1.1 billion to deliver faster rail services between Brisbane, Logan, Beenleigh and the Gold Coast. As the first piece of Olympics transport infrastructure, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the project would see more tracks laid and level crossings removed to support faster, more frequent train services. The investment follows the Federal The project will see fast rail services added between Brisbane, Logan, Beenleigh and the Gold Coast.
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and Queensland governments’ previous commitment of $356 million (on a 50:50 funding arrangement) in pre-construction funding for the project. A recently completed business case puts this project at a total cost of approximately $2.6 billion. The Logan and Gold Coast faster rail will double the capacity of the Gold Coast rail line and deliver seven station upgrades
and two station relocations to improve accessibility, safety and amenity, including platform straightening, and new pedestrian bridges as part of the works. This infrastructure funding will also complement the Cross River Rail project, which will provide a greater number of public transport routes to busy venues around Brisbane. Currently, trains between Kuraby and Beenleigh share a single track in each direction, limiting the number of peak services that can run. Since March 2018, Infrastructure Australia has included ‘Gold Coast rail line and station improvements: Kuraby to Beenleigh’ in the Infrastructure Priority List and the Southeast Queensland Regional Transport Plan identifies an upgrade of the Kuraby to Beenleigh section of the rail network as a priority action.
