Green Building Council of Australia ratings

The Green Building Council of Australia has awarded the highest rating (6 stars) to the Metro Tunnel for the design of its 5 new underground stations, and for its new signalling control centre at Sunshine.

The GBCA uses Green Star ratings to assess sustainability outcomes from the design and construction of new buildings. A 6-star rating is the highest rating a building can achieve, representing world leadership in design.

The Metro Tunnel’s stations were rated in the design phase, while the Sunshine Signalling Control Centre achieved its rating for both the Design and As Built phases.

These ratings recognise the Metro Tunnel as a world leader in environmentally sustainable building practices.

Metro Tunnel stations

In the early stages of planning for the Metro Tunnel, we worked closely with the GBCA to develop a custom Green Star rating tool to assess the sustainability performance of its stations.

In 2020, the Metro Tunnel’s 5 stations became the first underground railway stations in the world to be awarded 6-star Green Star ‘Design Review’ ratings, using this custom tool.

The GBCA Green Star system was adapted to address the unique complexities in developing and building underground structures.

The world-class ratings reflect the design consideration for each of the stations’ social, heritage and natural environments, and the project’s commitment to reducing waste, pollution and carbon emissions during construction and future operation.

A square building with large windows under a blue sky — Sunshine Signal Control Centre exterior

The inside of an office building with a yellow ceiling, wooden walls and carpet — Inside the control centre

A room with several large orange control boxes and lots of wires coming out of them — High-tech equipment

An office interior with a large skylight — Communal spaces and wooden finishings

Interior of office with a wooden board room table with plants visible outside the window — Large windows look out onto waterwise landscaping

View looking up out of a skylight framed by yellow walls, with blue sky and clouds visible — Skylights let in natural light

Sunshine Signal Control Centre

The Metro Tunnel Project built a new signalling control centre to oversee testing and operation of High Capacity Signalling and run the new High Capacity Trains through the Metro Tunnel and on the Sunbury Line.

The project team was contracted to deliver a building with a minimum 5-star Green Star Design and As Built rating. However, the team went above and beyond to achieve a 6-star rating.

Some of the building’s innovations include:

water-efficient fixtures, a rainwater harvesting system and subsurface drip irrigation system, reducing potable water use by 92%
a 45kW solar photo-voltaic (PV) system, offsetting peak summer electricity demand by 55%
347m2 of water-wise native landscaping, including a rain garden, to increase ecological value, reduce maintenance and water usage, and sustainably manage stormwater
an overall 86% improvement on greenhouse gas emissions compared to a standard practice building.