Work on North East Link is powering ahead with tunnelling underway in Watsonia and Bulleen.

We'll be working more hours of the day and night and continuously in some locations throughout the next stage of construction.

With new lanes on Bulleen Road and a temporary upgraded Manningham Road and Bridge Street intersection in place, focus in Bulleen will shift to tunnelling and construction of the future Manningham Road interchange.

Further south, we are building a section of the tunnel that will form part of the connection to the Eastern Freeway. You will notice a lot more machinery in this area, which is being used to complete the tunnel walls as part of our ‘cut and cover’ works.

At the tunnel entrance, we're continuing earthworks and also putting the foundations in place for the Yarra Link green bridge. You will also see retaining walls that will form the final position of Bulleen Road upon completion of the project.

What we’ve completed so far

Changes to Bulleen Road

In the last 10 months, there has also been a lot of change to Bulleen Road near the Eastern Freeway.

In December, we opened new lanes to create the space needed to begin works on the tunnel entrance. As you drive along Bulleen Road, you will see earthworks taking place in the old Bulleen Road lanes.

In May, Bulleen Road was moved a second time as part of the first major works for the Eastern Freeway upgrades. With lanes now moved, work has begun on the Eastern Freeway Interchange. You will notice earthworks and piling being undertaken to build the foundations for the entry and exit ramps that will connect the Eastern Freeway to North East Link.

Manningham Road interchange

Earlier this year, we made some significant changes to Bridge Street, Manningham Road, Bulleen Road and Templestowe Road by changing the direction of traffic flow, adding extra lanes and upgrading intersections.

These changes were implemented to ensure we can keep traffic moving as works on the future Manningham Road interchange continue.

You may have noticed some more machinery being used in the area between Bridge Street and Manningham Road. These machines are called hydro-mills and are used to install the tunnel walls that will form the future entry ramps into North East Link.

What we’re working on

Mined tunnelling

Initial works have begun to build the southern part of North East Link, between our Trinity and Manningham worksites.

Rather than using TBMs for this section of the tunnel, we will be using large machines called road headers to grind away at the rock deep underground as part of the Sequential Excavation Method (SEM) of tunnelling.

To assist with tunnelling activities at our Trinity work site, an acoustic shed is being installed to help remove dirt and rock. Once complete, the shed will be approximately 65m long, 25m wide and 17m in height.

The dirt and rock taken out from tunnelling will be moved into the acoustic shed to be safely loaded into trucks, covered and then taken off site before it is either reused or disposed of. This process will be managed in line with the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) guidelines.

What is SEM tunnelling?

As excavation progresses underground, concrete will be sprayed across the roof and sides of the tunnels and supports will be drilled into the surrounding rock to reinforce the tunnel structure. This method of tunnelling is being used due to the width required to complete the 4 lane tunnels in this section.

Managing construction

We're working closely with the local community to manage the impact of works. All works are carefully planned and managed to reduce impacts to local residents and businesses.

How we manage impacts

Light

When we work at night, we will use lights to provide safe working conditions. We will limit the light impacts on residential areas by facing lights towards work areas and away from homes as much as possible. We also use shields to minimise light spill into surrounding areas.

Dust

We try to avoid creating dust during construction. Where it can't be avoided, we will limit its impact on the environment by:

• covering, spraying and monitoring dirt and rock when being transported
• spraying water on open stockpiles and roads to keep dust down
• monitoring dust levels at key locations and taking additional action to suppress dust in extreme windy conditions
• implementing truck wheel washes and sealing haul roads to limit dust exiting the work site.

Noise

Strict controls have been put in place to make sure construction noise is well managed and complies with the (EPA) Victoria guidelines. These controls include:

• choosing materials and equipment that limit noise
• use of alternate construction methods to reduce noise impacts
• providing advance notice to the community and working with them to provide support options to reduce impacts
• monitoring noise levels and taking action to reduce noise wherever possible
• noise mitigation at the source, including noise walls and noise blankets.

If you feel you are experiencing excessive impacts from construction, contact the project team on 1800 105 105 or visit our Community Hub at 17 Watsonia Road, Watsonia between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday.

For languages other than English please call 9209 0147.

Please contact us if you would like this information in an accessible format. If you need assistance due to a hearing or speech impairment, visit relayservice.gov.au.