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The journey of our Dame Whina Cooper tunnel boring machine (TBM) has by far been the star of the show this year. The year began with the TBM being assembled, moved to the front of the tunnel portal, and readied for its first drive from the Mt Eden Station site. In May, Transport Minister Michael Wood and Auckland Mayor Phil Goff officially launched the TBM. By June, the TBM was gaining significant momentum as the tunneling team started excavating 24/7. In October, after an 860-metre-long journey, the TBM had its first breakthrough into the underground cavern of Karangahape Station. As the machine set off to its next destination, we began preparing for what we initially thought would be an early-2022 breakthrough to Aotea Station. But wait, surprise! Yesterday, the monumental milestone occurred as the TBM broke through into Aotea Station three days shy of Christmas. The breakthrough marked the completion of the first of two CRL bored tunnels. CRL CE Dr Sean Sweeney described the breakthrough as the “icing on CRL’s Christmas cake” after a year of significant advances - re-opening the city’s restored Chief Post Office, connecting Aotea to the Albert Street section of tunnels, mining New Zealand’s deepest station at Karangahape, re-locating the huge Huia 2 watermain at Mt Eden, and navigating through a Covid-19 pandemic. We would like to thank you for all your support, and we look forward to an exciting year ahead as we get Auckland on track to a better future. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a safe and happy New Year from the team at CRL.
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