Tunnel mining at the City Rail Link’s Mt Eden site switched to a 24-hour operation Monday-to- Friday last year to help maintain construction momentum on New Zealand’s largest transport infrastructure project.
Twenty-four hour work at the tunnel portal site on the corner of Nikau and Flower Streets began December 17.
Link Alliance Project director, Francois Dudouit, says measures wer in place to reduce the impact the increased hours may have of on the project’s residential and business neighbours.
“Mine tunnelling is an essential part of launching our Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) next April, but we are mindful of our supportive neighbours and we’ll be doing all we can to reduce any disturbance from our night works in particular,” he says
Work may produce some low-level noise and vibration which will reduce as mining gets deeper, and Mr Dudouit says noise and vibration will be closely monitored by environmental experts.
The Link Alliance is building a cavern and trench which the TBM will use to start its journey underground into central Auckland. The trench will later become the railway line connecting CRL with the Western Line at the redeveloped Mt Eden station.
The Link Alliance is delivering CRL’s main stations, tunnels and rail services contract for City Rail Link Ltd. CRL is due to be completed in 2024, delivering widespread benefits for Auckland that include more frequent and quicker train services.