The TBMs building Melbourne’s 6.5km North East Link twin tunnels between Watsonia and Bulleen have broken through at the Lower Plenty Road interchange site.
Since their launch last year, the 15.6m-diameter Herrenknecht TBMs Gillian and Zelda have travelled 1.6km to reach the interchange. They have more than 13,500 concrete segments.
Now both TBMs have broken through into the 30m-deep box at Lower Plenty Road, they will continue laying tunnel wall segments at the bottom of the box before relaunching underground to continue their drive to Bulleen.
The Lower Plenty Road interchange will allow vehicles to enter and exit the North East Link tunnels at Yallambie.
At the Bulleen end of the North East Link tunnels, the Yarra Link green bridge is taking shape and mined tunnelling is continuing with five large roadheaders chipping away at the rock layer deep underground. Crews are also undertaking major upgrades along the Eastern Freeway and the M80 Ring Road to get ready to connect the freeways to the tunnels.
The TBMs are operated by Spark consortium comprising Webuild, GS Engineering and Construction, CPB Contractors, China Construction Oceania, Ventia, Capella Capital, John Laing Investments, DIF and Pacific Partnerships.
North East Link will be completed in 2028. It is Victoria’s largest road project, and the biggest investment in Melbourne’s north-east. As well as the tunnels, it includes the Hurstbridge Line Duplication, Fitzsimons Lane Upgrade and removing 21 level crossings.
