A huge new metro station is being built beneath Sydney's CBD
In August of last year, the new stretch of the Sydney Metro City line opened, and Sydney went wild. The superfast driverless train system has transformed how Sydneysiders travel between the North Shore and the Inner West, but the Sydney Metro isn't stopping there. Once it's complete, the Sydney Metro network is due to comprise 46 stations – with the existing line extending all the way to Bankstown and a 23-kilometre line connecting to the new Western Sydney Airport. Alongside the new Western Sydney Airport metro line and the Sydney Metro City line extension, there's another major metro route currently under construction: Sydney Metro West. This 24-kilometre line – running from Sydney CBD to Westmead – is due to open in 2032, and construction has just reached a major milestone.
Deep beneath the CBD, the excavation for the huge Hunter Street Station – which will be the final station for the new line – is now complete. This station is due to be the busiest on the Western Sydney line, which is expected to double rail capacity between Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD. According to Transport for NSW, the Hunter Street Station will see 10,000 people per hour move through it during the morning peak by 2036.
As well as the subterranean metro station, the development of the Hunter Street precinct (in the heart of the CBD, with access points between O'Connell Street and Bligh Street and on the corner of George Street and Hunter Street) also involves the construction of Hunter Street Towers. The new world-class commercial and retail precinct will be formed by two towers, and will be directly connected to the station. Comprising a 58-storey building above Hunter Street Station East (between O'Connell Street and Bligh Street) and a 51-storey building above Hunter Street Station West (on the corner of George Street and Hunter Street), the development will support additional jobs and economic growth in Sydney CBD, with a direct link to the thousands of new homes set to be built along the Sydney Metro West line.
Currently, though, Hunter Street is home to an enormous, fully-excavated cavern which is ready to start welcoming construction. The cavern that now sits under Hunter Street is 20 metres high, 28 metres wide and 180 metres long – with 240,000 tonnes of material (enough to fill more than 290 Olympic size swimming pools) successfully removed from the site.
'This station is going to such an important gateway to Sydney's west, getting people to Parramatta in about 20 minutes, and linking precincts like Sydney Olympic Park, Burwood, the Bays and the health district of Westmead,' says Minister for Transport John Graham.
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