Tunnelling on the western end of the Sydney Metro West line has reached full completion after the second and final tunnel boring machine broke through into the future Westmead Station.
Westmead will be linked to Parramatta in a two-minute trip and the Sydney CBD in 22 minutes when Metro West opens in 2032.
Two months after tunnel boring machine Betty crossed the finish line into Westmead, a second machine, Dorothy, has completed the job after a subterranean journey two years through almost 800,000 tonnes of earth.
The Westmead metro station is going to better connect the hospital and health precinct in Sydney's west which is also serviced by rail, bus and light rail.
At the other end of the line, two machines are cutting their way underneath Darling Harbour to finish at Hunter Street in coming months.
Westmead Public School students have lent their hands to mark the end of the line, providing a splash of colour for posterity to the final concrete segment on the western end of the 24-kilometre line.
Thirty Year 5 and Year 6 students visited Sydney Metro's Rosehill site to paint the final tunnel segment before it was put in place by Dorothy.
More than 150,000 concrete segments will be installed on the Metro West line by full completion.
Westmead travel times:
- Westmead - Parramatta: 2 minutes
- Westmead - Five Dock: 14 minutes
- Westmead - Pyrmont: 20 minutes
- Westmead - Hunter Street: 22 minutes
Minister for Transport, John Graham said:
"This is a big moment as we see the light at the end of both tunnels on the western end of this massive, city-shaping project.
"The Westmead hospital and health precinct will become super-connected to the rest of Sydney through turn up and go metro services.
"I want to thank the students at Westmead Public School who lent us a hand to make the very last concrete segment that much more special. Metro is known for its public art, but this work is unique and will serve as a time capsule in the tunnel long after the line opens."
Member for Granville Julia Finna said:
"The community not only welcomes this project, but they have worked on it, including manufacturing involvement in Western Sydney.
"This is an exciting moment, and we cannot wait to see this metro come to life, giving the community better and faster connections to Parramatta and towards the city.
"It is exciting to be a part of history, this artwork will forever be a part of this city, placed deep beneath the ground."
Member for Parramatta Donna Davis said:
"Our community will welcome this huge milestone of an end to all tunnelling into the future Westmead Station.
"This project has so much local involvement from Western Sydney-manufactured concrete segments to a workforce that is majority locally-based.
"We are just so proud of the Year 5 and 6 students from Westmead Public for their colourful piece of art that will grace the tunnel for decades to come."
