Eight giant tunnel boring machines for the Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) have been officially named after influential and innovative women.
The machines have arrived on site as Labor ramps up major construction ramps on the SRL with tunnelling set to begin later this year.
More than 3,000 Victorians are now working on this game-changing project that will save people time, cut congestion and make life easier for busy families.
Following a tradition dating back to the 1500s, tunnel boring machines are named after women. The eight machines are:
- TBM Aayushi - named after heath advocate and medical student Aayushi Khillan, founder of social enterprise Body Buddies which uses soft toys to teach children about health.
- TBM Alice - named after music producer and musician Alice Ivy, who has been nominated for numerous ARIA awards and has played more than 400 shows across the world.
- TBM Belinda - named after steam train driver and medical student Belinda McKenzie, the first woman to drive Melbourne's historic Puffing Billy.
- TBM Bich Cam - named after Bich Cam Nguyen, founder and CEO of the Australian Vietnamese Women's Association and 2021 Senior Australian of the Year.
- TBM Elizabeth - named after Elizabeth Chong, celebrity chef, teacher and author who pioneered the popularisation of traditional Chinese cuisine in Australia.
- TBM Hacia - named after construction industry trailblazer Hacia Atherton, founder of Empowered Women in Trades that seeks to create a more inclusive future of women in construction.
- TBM Issy - named after the world's first female TBM pilot Isolde Piet, who will lead the SRL southern tunnelling crews, including the world's first all-women TBM crew.
- TBM Muriel - named after Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, Taungurung, Bunurong Elder Aunty Muriel Bamblett, advocate for Aboriginal children and families and Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency CEO.
The names were selected by students from Clayton North, Clayton South, Essex Heights, Huntingdale, Kerrimuir, Le Page and Roberts McCubbin primary schools along the SRL corridor.
When the line opens in 2035, today's primary school students will be among the first to use it to reach university, TAFE and work - slashing travel time, cutting congestion and reducing cost of living pressures on students.
A university student from Bayswater will travel to Monash University in just 37 minutes - saving 15 minutes on public transport.
A TAFE student from Carrum studying at Box Hill Institute will save 17 minutes catching public transport.
As stated by Minister for Suburban Rail Loop Harriet Shing
"The Suburban Rail Loop will slash travel times, cut congestion, and help busy families to save money - while delivering thousands of new homes within walking distance to jobs, healthcare, green open spaces and Australia's largest universities."
"Tunnel boring is on track to begin this year, unless Jess Wilson and the Liberals cancel the SRL - leaving families stuck in traffic, sacking 3,000 workers, blocking 70,000 homes and letting tunnel boring machines sink in the ground."
As stated by the Member for Ashwood Matt Fregon
"The Suburban Rail Loop is delivering for Ashwood - creating local jobs now and will give our families faster, easier connections to education, work and the services they rely on."
As stated by the Member for Oakleigh Steve Dimopoulos
"Clayton is at the heart of the Suburban Rail Loop, and this project will slash travel times, cut congestion and open up more opportunities for our growing community."
As stated by the Member for Box Hill Paul Hamer
"Box Hill will be a major beneficiary of the Suburban Rail Loop - delivering faster connections to jobs, education and healthcare while supporting more homes and opportunities right in the heart of our community."
As stated by Aayushi Khillan
"I came to Australia as a young immigrant at three years old, so to now be chosen by primary school students as the namesake of a tunnel boring machine is an honour beyond words."
As stated by Bich-Cam Nguyen
"Suburban Rail Loop East will help get you from A to B faster, causing less pollution and less time spent in traffic. Tunnel boring machines are certainly not boring! I'm very pleased to be part of this historic initiative."
As stated by Elizabeth Chong
"Of all the honours I have been bestowed throughout my career, this one is quite a thrill - especially as I was chosen by children. I feel like I am now a permanent part of Australia's history, that I have left a physical as well as emotional legacy.
As stated by Isolde Piet
"It's a huge honour to have one of the tunnel boring machines on the project named after me, especially when I look at the other remarkable women recognised by this initiative."
As stated by Aunty Muriel Bamblett
"It is truly an honour to have the Suburban Rail Loop East tunnel boring machine named after myself given the many Victorian women this tradition has honoured in the past."
