Sydney Metro City & Southwest

The Sydney Metro City & Southwest project consisted of 15.5 km of new underground twin tunnels, passing 40 metres under the bay, and the construction of 6 stations for the new metro line, some of which in the City Business District, the beating heart of the economy of the Australian capital. Our client Sydney Metro has estimated that the work will bring a 71% increase in the number of journeys made in the morning rush-hour and a travel shift from car to subway of 20,0006 trips during rush hour by 2036, thus significantly reducing city congestion. Other benefits include the reduced overcrowding of trains and the quality of commuting offered to passengers. The project received several sustainability awards including the Environment and Sustainability Initiative of the Year at the New Civil Engineer (NCE) Tunnelling Festival 2019 for its sustainable management of uncontaminated excavation material, transported by barge rather than by road and fully re-used in construction projects in the Sydney area. In 2020, the project obtained two important awards confirming its high quality and innovation levels: the Major Project of the Year at the International Tunnelling Association (ITA) Awards and the Tunnelling Project of the Year at the NCE Tunnelling Festival 2020. Lastly, in May 2022 the project won the prestigious Australian Construction Achievement Award. Thanks to an effective works acceleration schedule, the project was completed about one year ahead of the contractual date of November 2022, with the delivery of the last station, Barangaroo, in November 2021 and minor works completed in the first quarter of 2022.

A Few Numbers

A total of 30.5 km of mechanical excavations, completed in 17 months, and 3 weeks ahead of schedule, in early 2020. Some 560 technicians and engineers, over 1,800 workers and more than 10 million total hours.

Sydney Metro estimates the project will generate a 71% increase in peak morning hours trips and a travel modal shift from the automobile to the metro of 20,000 trips by 2036. The capacity of the completed metro will increase from 24,000 to 40,000 people/hour and trains run at an average of one every two minutes, significantly reducing urban congestion and improving quality of travel.