Excavation to create the future Hunter Street metro station is now complete, marking another significant step for the Sydney Metro West mega project.

Hunter Street Station will serve as the final stop on the 24-kilometre Sydney Metro West line that will double rail capacity between Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD when it opens in 2032.

It will be the busiest station on the line, with up to 10,000 people an hour forecast to move through it during the morning peak by 2036 via entrances on George, Bligh and O’Connell Streets.

There will be a pedestrian connection between Hunter Street station and Martin Place Station on the M1 Line.

Over 20 months, a single roadheader and a team of 57 workers has removed more than 240,000 tonnes of material - enough to fill more than 290 Olympic size swimming pools.

The cavern that now sits under Hunter Street is 20 metres high, 28 metres wide and 180 metres long.

Work on Hunter Street Station has had to be meticulous due to a range of nearby basements of high-rise buildings, heritage assets and underground services.

At times, work took place just 1.8 metres from the M1 Metro Line and directly below the heritage-listed State Library of NSW.

The turnback tunnels for Hunter Street station are eight metres below Sydney’s Tank Stream, and 21.5 metres below the City Circle Line.

Tunnel boring machines Jessie and Ruby, which are currently excavating the twin metro rail tunnels from The Bays towards Pyrmont and are expected to arrive at Hunter Street later this year.

For more information about the project, visit: http://sydneymetro.info/west/project-overview (file:///C:/Users/clawrie/Downloads/http://sydneymetro.info/west/project-overview).

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said:

“Connecting Sydney’s two CBDs by underground metro is a truly city-shaping project and it is exciting to see the Hunter Street station now excavated.

“Sydney Metro West will not only provide fast, reliable rail services but also play a key role in our agenda to boost housing supply in areas well-serviced by public transport.”

Minister for Transport John Graham said:

“The excavation of Hunter Street metro station is a feat of engineering when you consider the dig came mere metres away from other underground infrastructure, including the other metro line. I want to thank the workers who so expertly got this done safely in one of the densest parts of the CBD.

“This station is going to such an important gateway to Sydney’s west, getting people to Parramatta in about 20 minutes, and linking precincts like Sydney Olympic Park, Burwood, the Bays and the health district of Westmead.”

source: NSW Government. and Youtube.