Name and Location
North West Rail Link project, New South Wales, Australia.

Client
New South Wales Government.

Project Description
The North West Rail Link will be the first fully automated rapid transit rail system in Australia and forms part of Sydney’s Rail Future – a customer-focused public transport plan to modernise Sydney’s trains.

The project will deliver eight new railway stations at Cherrybrook, Castle Hill, Showground, Norwest, Bella Vista, Kellyville, Rouse Hill and Cudgegong road; and 4 000 commuter car parking spaces for Sydney’s growing north-west.

The project involves construction of 23 km of new electrified, twin-track, rapid transit railway between Epping and Tallawong road, Rouse Hill – extending rail to north-west Sydney.

The existing 13 km Epping-to-Chatswood rail link will be converted to exclusively run rapid transit trains – delivering a total of 36 km of rapid transit rail to north-west Sydney.

The North West Rail Link will have Australia’s longest rail tunnels – up to 63 m below ground at their deepest point and 15 km long.

Between Bella Vista and Rouse Hill, a 4 km skytrain is planned, followed by a further 4 km of bridges, embankments and surface tracks to the terminus.

Value
A$8.3-billion.

Duration
The North West Rail Link is expected to begin operation by the end of 2019.

Latest Developments
Elizabeth, the first of the North West Rail Link’s four tunnel-boring machines, has arrived in Australia and is being delivered in parts and reassembled in Sydney’s north-west.

Dozens of major components and thousands of smaller parts of Elizabeth are on their way from the Port of Newcastle to the Bella Vista tunnelling site.

Elizabeth will be reassembled in the coming months before the 9 km dig to Cherrybrook starts, which will be completed at about 120 m a week.

Elizabeth and the second tunnel-boring machine will tunnel from Bella Vista to Cherrybrook, while two others will tunnel 6 km from Cherrybrook to Epping.

The four machines will dig Australia’s longest railway tunnels – 15 km twin tunnels from Bella Vista to Epping – with the tunnelling contract on the North West Rail Link to be complete in 2017.

The second tunnel-boring machine will be delivered to Australia and be in the ground before the end of the year.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
New South Wales Government, tel +61 2 8202 2200 or fax +61 2 8202 2209.
North West Rail Link, email info@northwestrail.com.au.