Construction starts on Melbourne's Suburban Rail Loop

Construction has now commenced on Melbourne's Suburban Rail Loop East, in a project that will see Box Hill and Cheltenham connected via a new rail line and six underground stations.

The train stations include Box Hill, Burwood, Glen Waverley, Monash, Clayton and Cheltenham. Of the six stations, Box Hill, Glen Waverley, Clayton, and Cheltenham already have existing train stations, and upon project completion, will serve as interchange stations for multiple rail lines. Burwood and Monash are the only locations without an existing railway line.

The Suburban Rail Loop East (SRL East) is part of a wider Suburban Rail Loop project, which will involve the introduction of a 90km metro line and 13 stations. Architectus has led the initial design of all six SRL East stations, working within the AJM Consortium (Aurecon, Jacobs, Mott McDonald) together with the Suburban Rail Loop Authority to develop the concept and reference design and SRL East business case.

Premier Jacinta Allan and Minister for Suburban Rail Loop Danny Pearson visited the tunnel boring machine at the Burwood site on 5 February to provide a project update.

Works on the first tunnel access structure in Heatherton are set to begin in February 2024, followed by construction of a temporary bridge in Box Hill to reduce traffic congestion while works progress beneath Whitehorse Road. Early works in Cheltenham are also currently underway, with crews in Glen Waverley, Clayton and Monash University in the process of relocating utilities in preparation for construction.

Tunnelling is anticipated to begin in 2026. The first tunnelling contract to build tunnels between Cheltenham and Glen Waverley was awarded in 2023, with detailed survey works for this section to continue through 2024. The contract for tunnels between Glen Waverley and Box Hill will be granted later in 2024.

"By 2026, we'll have four tunnel boring machines in the ground, twin tunnels being built, major contracts awarded and major construction underway at every one of the six station sites," the premier said.

The SRL East metro line is expected to be operational by 2035. The project is jointly funded by the Victorian government and the federal government, with a $11.8 billion and $2.2 billion investments respectively.

The draft Suburban Rail Loop Precinct Visions is currently on exhibition until 3 March 2024, and has already received more than 2,000 responses.