The West Gate Tunnel Project - Tunnel Progress to Date.

The West Gate Tunnel Project includes tunnels and an elevated motorway connecting the West Gate Freeway with the Port of Melbourne, CityLink and the city. It provides an alternative crossing of the Maribyrnong River to the West Gate Bridge. The West Gate Tunnel also involves the widening of the West Gate Freeway (from the M80 Ring Road and Princes Freeway to Williamstown Road) and upgrades to the road connections. The tunnelling portion of the project involves construction of 2.4 km and 3.6km driven three lane highway tunnels beneath residential suburbs, a major arterial road, and two rail corridors. Enabling works began in January 2018 while tunnel construction using two earth pressure balance (EPB) tunnel boring machine (TBMs) with an outside diameter of 15.61 m began in January 2022. This paper introduces the project; and focusses on the tunnelling works. It gives an overview of the design features and construction progress to date. Design and construction highlights of the presentation will include the enabling works, and the launch, operation, and breakthrough of the twin TBMs themselves - which are the largest TBMs to have operated in the Southern hemisphere and will also touch on the innovative cross passage construction methodologies and the civil fit out works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]