Two tunnel boring machines (TBM) have broken through at the Pyrmont metro station cavern, the last stop before making the final one kilometre tunnel to connect with the Sydney CBD.
TBMs Jessie and Ruby started their journey from The Bays precinct in May 2024, completing one of the most complex digs on the Metro West project.
The tunnel between The Bays and Pyrmont comes within 25 metres of the Anzac Bridge, goes under Johnstons Bay and through the complex geographical ground of the Luna Park Fault Zone.
The machines broke through within five hours of each other, making it only the second double TBM breakthrough for the Sydney Metro West project.
Following a five-week pit stop 24 metres underground, Jessie and Ruby will start their final stretch of tunnelling under Darling Harbour to connect the city-shaping project to Hunter Street in the heart of Sydney’s CBD.
Work to unlock the transformation of the western harbour foreshore has also leapt forward, with planning approval for a vibrant mixed-use precinct at Pyrmont given the green light.
A 31-storey over station development will rise above the future metro station, with room for 160 residential apartments and five levels of commercial and retail opportunities.
On the doorstep of Darling Harbour and the new Sydney Fish Market, the new Pyrmont metro precinct will connect more passengers than ever before to the harbourside suburb, creating new jobs and housing supply in the process.
When it opens in 2032, Sydney Metro West will connect Pyrmont to Hunter Street in just two minutes.
New South Wales Minister for Transport, John Graham, said, “TBMs Ruby and Jessie are doing a smashing job delivering this complex section of tunnels into Pyrmont.
“These tunnels will form what will be a critical public transport connection between the Sydney CBD and the Parramatta CBD.
“Pyrmont’s new metro station precinct will be a dynamic hub and play a key role in supporting the transformation of Sydney’s western harbourside into a growing entertainment destination,” Graham said.
“Sydney Metro West is more than just a transport project – along with moving hundreds of thousands of passengers each day, it will deliver up to 1,600 well-located homes within its station precincts.”
For further information, including a 3D interactive model of the proposed development at Pyrmont, visit the Sydney Metro West interactive portal.
