CRL Connection
April 2019
CRL Chief Executive Sean Sweeney at the media briefing yesterday
CRL names preferred bidder for main works City Rail Link Ltd (CRLL) has made three significant announcements to complete the City Rail Link project by the end of 2024. We have named a group of New Zealand and international infrastructure companies known as the Link Alliance as our preferred bidder to complete its substantive C3 Contract – construction of the twin tunnels, building two underground stations and redeveloping the existing Mt Eden Station on the western line. We’re now negotiating with the Link Alliance to get an Early Works Contract worth $75 million underway as quickly as possible to keep up momentum on the project. The contract includes work relating to design,
consents, permitting, utilities and mobilisation ahead of works starting on C3. CRL’s Chief Executive Dr Sean Sweeney says that the Early Works Contract “will keep us on track to have this transformational project in place and delivering significant benefits for Aucklanders at the end of 2024”. Alongside the preferred bidder and Early Works Contract announcements CRL Limited also announced a revised cost for the entire project of $4.419 billion. “The $1 billion cost increase on the previous $3.4 billion estimate made in 2014 reflects significant changes impacting the project in the past five years,” says Dr Sweeney.
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“No-one could have foreseen the competitive pressures that have occurred in the construction industry over the past few years and the impact that has on costs, particularly for a project the scale and complexity of the City Rail Link. “Eighteen months ago, the value of work in the infrastructure pipeline on both sides of the Tasman was $80 billion – the value of that work is now estimated at $230 billion.” Decisions by the two project sponsors – the Crown and Auckland Council – regarding their endorsement of the revised cost envelope are expected in early May. Announcements “represent huge step forwards for a project that will create accessibility and development opportunities that will allow Auckland to remodel itself as a city that is proudly international,” Dr Sweeney says. Further detail on this week’s announcements on the revised cost for City Rail Link and the preferred bidder for C3 are on CRL’s website here.
Tunnel boxes nearing completion Tunnel box construction along Albert Street is now 92% complete – and is expected to be finished in late June 2019 (with 28 of 29 sections of wall, and 25 of 29 sections of roof currently complete). Before each section of the concrete walls can be poured, massive steel formwork that shapes the tunnel walls are put into place. The tunnel walls from Albert Street curve under the Commercial Bay site, before ultimately leading into the re-built Britomart station. As we near tunnel box completion, construction activity will increase at road level as contractor Connectus Joint Venture focuses on the reinstatement of Albert Street. These activities will result in more frequent traffic switches. You can find updates on construction and changes to traffic flows on our website here.
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Albert St trench facing north
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Northern tunnel wall construction begins at Britomart Left: A view of the Commercial Bay tunnels from Lower Queen St Below: CRL tunnel formation under Lower Queen St, looking towards Commercial Bay
Construction is progressing well on the CRL train tunnels under Lower Queen Street and Britomart’s Chief Post Office (CPO) building. With the northern tunnel’s concrete base slabs now complete beneath the CPO building, work has begun to construct the tunnel walls. Contractor Downer Soletanche Bachy Joint Venture is expecting to start constructing the first section of the roof next month. This follows excavation of the 14-metre-deep trench within Lower Queen Street and beneath the CPO building which will contain the new tunnel boxes, and the breakthrough to the CRL tunnels built under the neighbouring Commercial Bay development site. In the lower levels of Britomart Station, demolition of the existing bluestone wall between platform 1 and the CPO building has started. This will enable the existing train line to eventually link with the northern tunnel under the CPO building once the CRL is operational.
After Easter, the stairs between lift 1 and the escalators will be removed at the station to enable the installation of a fourth escalator between the B1 and B2 levels.
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Jeffie encounters ancient tree 18m underground ‘Jeffie’ – the mini tunnel boring machine that has diverted the stormwater main that lies in the path of the future CRL tunnels at Mt Eden - will complete her 420-metre journey between Water and Nikau Streets over Easter.
Jeffie with fragments of wood wound around her blades
The diversion needed to be completed before station and tunnel works can begin in the area. While 18 metres underground, Jeffie encountered an ancient tree, which wound itself around her cutting blades (think of flax getting stuck in a lawnmower’s blades). The tree is estimated to be between 30,000 and 40,000 years old and was likely preserved during a volcanic eruption when engulfed in lava. Members of CRL’s Mana Whenua Forum believe the preserved tree is probably whau (Entelea arborescens), which is endemic to Mt Eden. Because whau has a very light wood, it was traditionally used by iwi for floats on fishing nets.
CRL works start at Ōtāhuhu To help prepare Auckland’s rail network for increased train services once the CRL opens in 2024, KiwiRail has started building a new section of rail to a third platform at Ōtāhuhu Station. Over the next year, a new 1.3-kilometrelong section of track will be constructed alongside the main line between Ōtāhuhu Station and Portage Road. This will include four new cross-over points to allow trains to switch between tracks and new overhead line and signalling equipment. CRL chief executive, Dr Sean Sweeney, says the Otahuhu works are another important step forward for the project and for improved public transport provision for Auckland.
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An additional rail line will be added alongside the platform on the right hand side
KiwiRail and contractor Total Rail Solutions will deliver most of its Ōtāhuhu works during weekday business hours. Some work will be completed during weekends and public holidays when there are no trains running and the overhead lines are shut off.
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CRL sub-contractor wins sustainability award CRL supplier Allied Concrete (Allied) has received the ‘Champion of Change 2018’ Sustainability Award from Downer Soletanche Bachy Joint Venture (DSBJV) for their work on Britomart and Lower Queen Street. Allied is being recognised for its efforts to trial the use of secondary filtration systems and synthetic oils in their concrete fleet, improving fuel efficiency and reducing oil consumption. Allied’s efforts have resulted in a fuel saving of up to 4.5%. The use of synthetic oils has also allowed them to extend the period between oil drains from 500 hours to a minimum of 1000 hours – estimated to reduce their annual oil consumption by 78%. Allied has now switched its entire national concrete fleet to synthetic oils. Sarah Sutherland, DSBJV’s Environmental and Sustainability Manager, says this initiative is “above
Steve Urquhart, Sales Manager, receiving Allied’s award from DSBJV project director Dale Burtenshaw
and beyond” Allied’s sustainability targets for the project: “We’ve been really impressed with their passion for creating change in their business.”
Site tours with Auckland rail enthusiasts CRL receives regular requests for construction site tours from groups interested in seeing the great feats of engineering on New Zealand’s largest infrastructure project. We recently hosted tours of our Britomart and Albert Street sites with technology students from Kings College and staff and volunteers from MOTAT. They visited works at Britomart Station and along Nick Adams, our C1 Construction Manager says it was rewarding to share construction learnings with our next generation of engineers and rail enthusiasts. The delegation from MOTAT included some of Auckland’s finest rail veterans. They were very appreciative of the opportunity and offered CRL staff an in-depth tour of MOTAT’s tram and rail sections in return!
Above: The MOTAT tour group checking out Albert St tunnel Below: Kings College students site tour group
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