By ashleykaren
With a metro train finishing the 3-minute railway crossing beneath Sydney Harbor from North Sydney’s new Victoria Cross Station into the Sydney CBD, a transport milestone for the record books has been reached.
The milestone journey was realized as part of a strict testing schedule underway on the Sydney Metro City and Southwest line, which has lately accelerated into the next testing phase concerning multiple trains being tested at higher speeds.
Next year, turn-up-and-go metro trains will take passengers from Victoria Cross Station to Barangaroo Station in only 3 minutes and reach speeds of up to 100km/h in the Sydney Harbor metro tunnel.
Victoria Cross Station is 1 of 6 new city stations that is claimed to open in 2024 and will deliver unrivaled connectivity to commuters when traveling between the bustling North Sydney business district and the Sydney CBD.
Advancement to build Victoria Cross Station is powering ahead, with the station over 85% complete. In addition, work to provide the station’s platform level constructed inside Australia’s most considerable railway cavern, 31m under the ground, is now completed.
With final commissioning being progressively finished, all 14 new lifts and 19 new escalators to take commuters down to the platform are installed. All 22 Opal gates across the two entrances are installed and ready for passengers.
The last touches to North Sydney’s newest transport hub will be made in the coming months, comprising station entrances and adjoining retail and public domain areas. All station works are envisioned to be finished by early 2024.
The Victoria Cross Station construction has been nothing short of a logistical success requiring ingenuity from Sydney Metro delivery partners Lendlease. However, workers constructed the station by maneuvering all materials, supplies, and equipment through the site’s only access point – an area of merely 2.5m2 or the size of a standard garage door.
Over 5000 people have worked on the delivery, design, and construction of the station, with over 50,000 employment opportunities developed throughout the life of the City and Southwest project.
As expected, nearly 15,150 passengers will pass through Victoria Cross Station during the morning peak when it opens to the public. The station is said to take pressure off the current North Sydney Station and deliver fast and reliable transport service for passengers in the North Sydney business, education, and residential areas.
When open, passengers will have fast metro travel times into the city from Victoria Cross, containing to Barangaroo in 3 minutes, Martin Place in 5 minutes, and Gadigal in 7 minutes.
Jo Haylen, Minister for Transport, stated: “Seeing this incredible station today and experiencing the 3-minute metro ride under the harbor brings home how truly incredible this city-shaping metro will be when it starts into the Sydney CBD next year.”
She continued: “World-class metro services will be the fastest express lane in town when traveling across the harbor from the city’s north.”
“When Sydney Metro City and Southwest opens in 2024, metro services will move more people across the Harbor in the busiest hour of the peak than the Sydney Harbor Bridge and Sydney Harbor Tunnel combined,” added Jo Haylen.
She also claimed: “Sydney Metro will extend the CBD, with the bustling North Sydney business district only a quick few minutes on the metro away from the city center.”
In addition, Haylen noted: “Extensive testing has been underway on the City and Southwest metro line since April 2023, and so far, more than 2500 hours and 12,500 kilometers of testing has been completed as we countdown to the opening of the next exciting stage of the metro.”
