1 March 2023 to 30 December 2023
Construction works at the northern entry and exit point for the tunnels on Whitehall Street and throughout Yarraville
The West Gate Tunnel Project will be continuing work in 2023 at the ‘northern portal’ (the northern entry/exit point for the tunnels) on Whitehall Street and throughout Yarraville. These activities include building a large crane inside the portal and building a ventilation structure, substation and freeway control centre.
We’ll also start roadworks to connect the tunnel to the new bridges currently under construction over the Maribyrnong River.
If any of these works are expected to be disruptive, we will be in touch before they begin.
What to expect and when
| Impact | Date |
|---|---|
Nightworks (9pm to 5am) at the northern portal.These works will support tunnelling activities and include vehicle movement and deliveries of concrete segments. Ongoing ground water monitoring may also be carried out around Yarraville at night. Residents will be notified in advance. | Ongoing |
| Truck movements in the area, including trucks transporting excavated material 24/7 from the tunnelling hub at Whitehall Street. | Ongoing |
| Minor noise from construction works. | Ongoing |
| Occasional lane closures on local Yarraville roads. | Ongoing |
| Occasional night-time lighting. | Ongoing |
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Northern portal at Whitehall Street
Ongoing
We’re continuing construction at our northern portal site along Whitehall Street between Youell Street and Somerville Road.
The portal is an important part of the Project’s tunnelling hub, with tunnelling support activities to take place 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
We will be completing the portal roof deck which acts as the ground floor for the ventilation structure. These works include concrete pours,installation of precast concrete units, steel fixing and waterproofing.
You might notice minor construction noise from the site and truck movements to and from the site.
Tunnelling
Ongoing
While the inbound tunnel excavation is now complete, the excavation of the outbound tunnel continues. The Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and has passed underneath Yarraville.
You can see the progress being made by the TBMs via our online tracker.
The team are also building several smaller passages connecting the two tunnels, allowing access between them in case of an emergency and for maintenance.
TBM Vida retrieval
We’ll work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to dismantle the TBM for the inbound tunnel in the retrieval pit on the West Gate Freeway. TBM parts will be lifted out of the retrieval pit by a crane and transported to the tunnelling hub via Williamstown Road, Francis Street and Whitehall Street.
We’ll contact properties on Williamstown Road, Francis Street and Whitehall Street closer to the time to explain this work in more detail.
Northern portal ventilation structure
From late March
We will start to build the ventilation structure inside the northern portal within the next few months. To do this, we’ll set up a temporary crane on site. These works may include piling. Once the crane has been built, work will begin to construct the concrete walls of the structure.
When completed, the ventilation structure will stand around 47m tall.
Works include pouring concrete to form the walls of the structure as well as installing precast concrete segments.
Freeway control centre construction
Ongoing
Work is continuing to build the freeway control centre (FCC) at the northern portal site. The FCC building will be the operations centre for the West Gate Tunnel and other Linkt road connections.
These works include ongoing concrete works,installing steel roofing and precast concrete cladding, and fitting out the FCC with services.
Substation construction
From February
Work will soon start to build the substation, which will power the tunnels’ electrical, mechanical and instrumentation components.This includes concrete pours, putting up steel structures, and precast installation.
Road establishment from Lyon Street
From March
A link between Lyon Street and the access street off Whitehall Street will be built in the first half of the 2023. These works will include asphalting.
Surrounding properties will be contacted to discuss this work before it starts.
Ongoing monitoring in Yarraville
You may see our team carrying out water sampling as part of our regular groundwater monitoring requirements to confirm that ground water is behaving as expected. You may also see the ground monitoring team around local streets and parks installing further monitoring equipment linked to tunnelling.
These works may include traffic changes for drivers on local roads and occasional nightworks, with minimal noise impacts to surrounding residents and businesses. We’ll be in touch if any work may be disruptive.
More detail on what you can expect during these works:
- Construction vehicles will be moving in and out of the area including excavators, concrete trucks, cranes and rollers.
- Minor vibration and noise may be experienced during these works.
- Water-spray trucks and road sweepers will be used in local streets around our worksites, keeping local roads clean during construction.
- Changes in traffic conditions may be experienced during these activities.
- Lighting will be angled away from homes wherever possible while our teams work at night to avoid impact to residents.
Thank you
We appreciate our work can be disruptive and thank you for your understanding. Works may be rescheduled in the event of unexpected impacts.
Contact us
For updates or questions, you can:
- call 1800 105 105
- email us at info@wgta.vic.gov.au
- visit our website or
- you can drop into our Information Centre at 2 Somerville Road, Yarraville 3013 Monday–Friday 10am–5pm or Saturday 10am–4pm for further information on the project.
Learn more
Read about the new tunnels that will connect the West Gate Freeway with Footscray Road.