Crews working on the Metro Tunnel have clocked up 40 million hours of work since the project began in 2015.
Work is still continuing around the clock to get the stations and the twin 9km tunnels ready for the first test trains to run through the tunnel in the second half of this year.
In the coming months, crews will be testing new high-tech signalling, communications and other systems that allow trains to safely run closer together.
These systems are the first step towards making Melbourne a ‘turn-up-and-go’ network, similar to world-class commuter cities like Singapore and London.
Everything from lifts, escalators, security systems, communications, lighting, plumbing, power and the platform screen doors will also be progressively tested in a rigorous process over many months, before the Metro Tunnel opens to passengers a year ahead of schedule in 2025.