The delicate retrieval of a 1100-tonne machine from beneath Sydney’s busiest streets
A 1100-tonne tunnel boring machine named 'Jessie' is being carefully disassembled and removed from beneath Sydney’s CBD after completing its role in excavating the Metro West rail line’s underground cavern for the future Hunter Street Metro Station. The machine, which tunnelled 2.3 kilometres including a section under Sydney Harbour, will be lifted in pieces to the surface and transported to Newcastle for shipment to China. The station, set to open in 2032, will be the largest and busiest on the network, serving as a key interchange between metro and heavy rail. Tunnelling for Sydney Metro projects is now complete unless future extensions are approved.
- ▪Jessie, a 1100-tonne tunnel boring machine, finished excavating a 2.3-kilometre stretch from The Bays to Hunter Street, including a complex section under Sydney Harbour.
- ▪The machine is being disassembled into 16 pieces and lifted through a shaft before being trucked to Newcastle and shipped to China for recycling or return to the manufacturer.
- ▪The Hunter Street Metro Station, set to open in 2032, will be Australia’s largest underground rail cavern and is projected to handle over 16,200 passengers during the morning peak hour.
- ▪The station is forecast to be the most expensive on Sydney’s metro network, with a $1.5 billion price tag.
- ▪NSW Transport Minister John Graham indicated potential future metro extensions are under consideration in the city’s north-west and south-west.
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