A transport milestone for the record books has been achieved, with a metro train completing the 3-minute railway crossing under Sydney Harbour, from North Sydney’s new Victoria Cross Station into the Sydney CBD.
The milestone journey was realised as part of a rigorous testing program underway on the Sydney Metro City and Southwest line, which has recently accelerated into the next testing phase involving 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 just 3 minutes and reach speeds of up to 100km/h in the Sydney Harbour metro tunnel.
Victoria Cross Station is 1 of 6 new city stations that will open in 2024 and will provide commuters with unrivalled connectivity when travelling between the bustling North Sydney business district and the Sydney CBD.
Progress to construct Victoria Cross Station is powering ahead, with the station more than 85% complete.
Work to deliver the station’s platform level built inside Australia’s largest railway cavern, 31m below ground, is now finished.
All 14 new lifts and 19 new escalators to take commuters down to the platform are installed with final commissioning being progressively completed. All 22 of the Opal gates across the 2 entrances are installed, ready for passengers.
Final touches to North Sydney’s newest transport hub will be made in coming months, including to station entrances and adjoining retail and public domain areas. All station works are expected to be completed by early 2024.
The construction of Victoria Cross Station has been nothing short of a logistical triumph requiring ingenuity from Sydney Metro delivery partners Lendlease. Workers built the station by manoeuvring all materials, supplies and equipment through the site’s only access point – an area of just 2.5m2, or the size of a standard garage door.
More than 5000 people have worked on the delivery, design and construction of the station, with more than 50,000 employment opportunities created throughout the life of the City and Southwest project.
About 15,150 passengers are expected to pass through Victoria Cross Station during the morning peak when it opens to the public. The station will take pressure off the existing North Sydney Station and provide fast and reliable transport service for passengers in the North Sydney business, education and residential areas. Once open, passengers will have fast metro travel times into the city from Victoria Cross, including to Barangaroo in 3 minutes, Martin Place in 5 minutes and Gadigal in 7 minutes.
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Minister for Transport Jo Haylen said:
“Seeing this incredible station today and experiencing the 3-minute metro ride under the harbour brings home how truly incredible this city-shaping metro will be when it starts into the Sydney CBD next year.
“World-class metro services will be the fastest express lane in town when travelling across the harbour from the city’s north.
“When Sydney Metro City and Southwest opens in 2024, metro services will move more people across the Harbour in the busiest hour of the peak than the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Harbour Tunnel combined.
“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 centre.
“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 kilometres of testing has been completed as we countdown to the opening of the next exciting stage of metro.”
