Two mega TBMs arrive at Burwood North Metro Station for Sydney Metro West

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Two TBMs have arrived at the Burwood North Metro Station site as the Sydney Metro West twin tunnels connecting Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD charge ahead.

This marks a significant milestone on the Sydney Metro West project that the NSW Government has enhanced by driving housing uplift along the line.

The TBMs have each built 6.26km of tunnel, so far excavating a combined 1,200,000t of dirt (around 196 Olympic swimming pools) and installing around 44,100 tunnelling segments to line the new tunnel walls.

The TBMs are more than halfway through the 11km journey to carve out a section of the alignment between The Bays and Sydney Olympic Park, via future station sites at Five Dock, Burwood North and North Strathfield.

It will take just over 2 weeks for the TBMs to traverse to the western end of the cavern where they will be relaunched to tunnel the 1.8km to the next stop at Metro’s North Strathfield station site.

TBMs Beatrice and Daphne are due to complete the journey to Sydney Olympic Park in the second half of 2024.

Sydney Metro West TBMs relaunch to continue journey towards Sydney Olympics Park metro station

Sydney Metro West tunnelling works ramp up at The Bays

“When Burwood North Metro Station opens, it will be an exciting, state-of-the-art transport destination that will change the way people move in what is currently a very bus-dependent corner of our city, and it will take pressure off the existing T1 Western line,” says Transport Minister Jo Haylen.

This enhanced project will double rail capacity between Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD, making it easier and faster to travel around Western Sydney.

Final two Sydney Metro West tunnel boring machines arrive

It will also turbocharge the delivery of new housing along transport lines improving affordability of housing, while reducing building and infrastructure costs and creating thriving communities.

Sydney Metro West is expected to be complete by 2032.

Click here to read more about the Sydney Metro West project.

TBM Beatrice and Daphne facts:

  • TBMs are double-shield, hard rock TBMs specifically designed to excavate through the sandstone and shale ground conditions. 
  • A team of 15 workers per shift operate each TBM as it excavates an average of 200m per week.
  • The TBMs are 165m long (more than the length of 2x A380s which are approx. 73m).
  • TBMs are built using refurbished cutterheads, front shields and gripper shields from TBMs used on the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project.
  • Each TBM is approx. 7m in diameter.
  • 34x disc cutters per cutterhead (disc cutters are approx. 48cm in diameter).
  • Heaviest pieces of the TBM are the front shield and gripper shield both approx. 280t each, the cutterhead is approximately 102t.
  • To prepare for the arrival of the TBMs, the Burwood North station box cavern was excavated and about 532,105t of material was removed to create the 29-metre-deep box-like structure that is 25m wide and 194m long.

Source: © NSW Government 2024

Image Source: © Transport for NSW 2024

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