By Lynda Myer
Using roadheader Rhonda, the first service tunnel that links Sydney’s 24km Metro West line to a new stabling and maintenance facility at Clyde has been completed, while this machine broke through a wall of rock to complete the 700m-long service tunnel following 12 months of excavation.
Trains are going to use the tunnel when departing the service facility that will be at the core of the new Metro West network. Including the operations control center and infrastructure to maintain the new fleet of metro trains, this tunnel will house operational and maintenance functions.
In order to constructing the service tunnels and junction caverns, Roadheader Rhonda is working alongside roadheaders Charlotte and Ivory. So far, the machines have excavated a combined 200,000 tons of material.
The process of building second service tunnel will be continuing in the future months, whereas 3,600 concrete segments are slated to be used for lining the walls which are manufactured in Metro West’s purpose-built precast facility in Eastern Creek.
The segments each weigh six tons and will be lifted into place by a specialized lining erecting machine, an innovation which is a first for a Metro project. The machine works like a robot arm, picking up the concrete segments and placing them in position with a vacuum plate.
The scheduled date for completion of Sydney Metro West is 2032 and it is due to double rail capacity between Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD. The project’s delivery partner is a Gamuda Laing O’Rourke Consortium.
