- Published:
- Sunday 15 January 2017
Two streets in the CBD will close today for construction of the $10.9 billion Metro Tunnel, which will create space to run more trains, more often across Melbourne’s suburbs.
From today, sections of Franklin and A’Beckett Streets will be closed for many years and transformed in to major construction sites to build the new CBD North Station.
Construction crews will dig down 11 storeys below the ground to construct the new CBD North Station below Swanston Street.
The new station will be linked directly to Melbourne Central Station, providing a seamless interchange between the new Metro Tunnel, the City Loop and the rest of the network.
Franklin Street is closed to vehicle traffic between Swanston Street and Victoria Street, and A’Beckett Street is closed between Swanston Street and Stewart Street.
To improve traffic flow, parking near intersections on La Trobe Street between Exhibition and King streets is being removed to introduce a new permanent traffic lane, and a ‘no stopping’ zone introduced eastbound on Victoria Street between Leicester and Nicholson streets in the morning.
Work is also underway on St Kilda Road at the site of the future Domain Station. Later this year, Domain Road will close from St Kilda Road to the edge of Edmund Herring Oval for construction of the new station.
For more information about the Metro Tunnel and upcoming construction activities, visit metrotunnel.vic.gov.au.
Quotes attributable to Acting Minister for Public Transport Jaala Pulford
“This is the start of major disruptions for this massive project, which will bring decades of benefits for Melbourne.”
“The Metro Tunnel is being built in the heart of the city, but it’s a project for all of Victoria – enabling more trains, more often right across Melbourne.”
“I thank people for their patience. I know these closures will be disruptive but they will enable us to build the turn-up-and-go train system we need to stay the most liveable city in the world.”