A preferred bidder has been chosen to build the new underground stations at Glen Waverley, Burwood and Box Hill – a huge step forward for Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) East.
Place is a consortium of John Holland, Kellogg Brown and Root, and Arup and has deep experience delivering major infrastructure projects, including experience on Metro Tunnel, Sydney Metro, WestConnex and Inland Rail.
The SRL East stations will be fully accessible, light-filled spaces with plazas, retail and dining – and will feature elements inspired by the history of the local community and First Nations peoples. Sustainability is at the heart of design, with each station to have a Green Star rating of at least five stars.
SRL will have safe, fast and easy connections to existing Metro stations, as well as new and upgraded bus and tram interchanges, new walking and cycling paths and world-class secure bike parking facilities.
SRL will not only slash travel times and cut congestion – as Australia’s largest housing project it will help deliver 70,000 more homes in the neighbourhoods around the six new stations – closer to jobs, healthcare, and Australia’s largest universities.
With the new SRL station in Box Hill, a nurse from Carrum working at Box Hill Hospital will save 17 minutes on public transport.
A Deakin University student from Cranbourne will save 27 minutes getting to uni in Burwood on public transport and 24 minutes compared to driving.
A student studying in Caulfield going to Glen Waverley to visit family will save 17 minutes on public transport.
Detailed negotiations with Place are now underway, with the Stations Alliance North contract expected to be awarded in 2026.
The two other shortlisted bidders – ESPA and Connexus – will now compete for the second stations contract – to build the stations at Cheltenham, Clayton and Monash.
Construction of SRL East from Cheltenham to Box Hill is creating up to 8000 direct local jobs, with major construction underway and tunnelling to start next year.
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