CRL Connection Newsletter Oct 2017

CRL Connection

25 October 2017

Albert Street dig passes halfway mark at southern end

City Rail Link contractor Connectus Joint Venture has passed the halfway mark at the southern end of the Albert Street trench that will eventually house the CRL tunnel box.

Excavators working both inside and outside of the trench have now dug 10 out of the total 18 metres at the Wyndham Street end of Albert Street, removing about 300 cubic metres of spoil each day.

You can watch the underground excavation from two viewing platforms that span the Albert Street trench at Swanson and Wyndham Streets.

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Continuous traffic lanes return to Albert in December By the end of the year, the Albert Street construction deck will be completed, enabling a continuous traffic lane to be provided on both sides of the road along the full length of Albert Street.

This will remove the current need to divert northbound traffic along Wolfe Street and enable the street to return to its original one-way eastbound configuration.

Customs/Albert intersection restored Construction of a traffic deck under the Customs/Albert Street intersection has now been completed, restoring normal traffic flow (two lanes in each direction) along Customs Street.

The reinforced concrete deck allows vehicles to travel through the intersection – and in and out of Albert Street - while the excavation of the CRL tunnel boxes continues underneath.

Wellesley Street reinstated Construction equipment has now been cleared from Wellesley Street at the Albert Street intersection.

The Wellesley Street shaft for the new stormwater line under Albert Street has been capped and the road reinstated.

All the stormwater that used to flow through the old pipe down the middle of Albert Street has been diverted into the new line that runs further to the east between Wellesley and Swanson Streets.

The right-hand turn from Wellesley to Albert Street will be restored in the New Year.

NEW ON THE WEBSITE - More updates on our new website cityraillink.co.nz including • Latest time-lapse videos of construction work • Images of the tunnels appearing on Fletchers’ Commercial Bay site

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• A look at construction work nine metres below Albert Street

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Victoria Street shaft site removal begins The large acoustic shed that surrounded one of the Victoria Street shafts is now being dismantled and should be gone by December.

The 22-metre-deep shaft, which launched the tunnel boring machine that pipe-jacked the new Albert Street stormwater line, is being backfilled. The shed will then be removed and Victoria Street realigned to its pre-construction state.

In December, once the road surface has been rebuilt, traffic lanes will be moved over to the northern side of Victoria Street so the footpath on the southern side can be reinstated.

The second Victoria Street shaft to the west of Albert Street is also being backfilled.

Victoria Street is expected to be back to normal by Christmas.

Work full steam ahead at Britomart Work continues inside Britomart’s Chief Post Office (CPO) building and on Lower Queen Street to prepare for the underground construction of the CRL tunnels.

Inside the CPO, the CRL’s hydrofraise piling machine is constructing the 15 to 20-metre-deep diaphragm walls that will serve three important purposes: to provide ground support and prevent groundwater infiltration during excavation and structural support for the CPO building and CRL tunnels. To date, 24 out of 64 ‘D-walls’ have been completed inside the CPO, totalling 71m in length and using 1,070m3 of concrete.

Outside the CPO on Lower Queen Street, contractors Downer Soletanche Bachy have begun the careful removal of the heritage stairs. This work will continue into November.

At platform level in Britomart Station, a section of platform has been removed on the northern side (and a new platform edge reconstructed) to allow the northern CRL tunnel to connect to the end of Platform 1. Temporary facilities are also being constructed here and these will be removed prior to the CRL becoming operational.

Diaphragm wall reinforcing cages outside Britomart.

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info@CityRailLink.govt.nz

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Kia ora, CRL tunnels!

Here are the first signs of the CRL tunnels!

This tunnel section sits within Precinct Properties’ Commercial Bay development being built by Fletcher Construction. These will link to the twin cut and cover tunnels being constructed either side of the Commercial Bay building site: at the Britomart Transport Centre and up Albert Street.

Precinct Properties’ $681 million development includes a new 39 – level commercial office tower and a retail centre where the Downtown Shopping Centre used to be, opposite Britomart at the foot of Queen Street. The tower’s foundations are being dug concurrently with the first sections of CRL tunnels.

A taste of Mexico on Wellesley Street For an authentic taste of Mexico in Auckland’s CBD, look no further than Little Mexico Cantina in Wellesley Street.

Owner-manager Jose Armani opened his restaurant and bar in 2007, priding himself on serving generous portions of quality food and great margaritas.

“Most people are in a food coma when they leave here,” Jose jokes.

“Our prices are still same as they were eight years ago and the quantity and quality of our food has never changed.”

Popular dishes include enchiladas, chimichangas and fajitas and there’s a good range of Mexican beers and premium tequila too.

Jose says customers love the cantina’s beautiful hand-painted interior and its romantic and relaxed ambience and they consistently rate it as Auckland’s best Mexican cantina in online reviews.

Located only a minute’s walk from local theatres, Little Mexico is open 4pm-10pm, Monday to Saturday. Visit www.littlemexico.co.nz for more details

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