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Above: The breathtaking concourse beneath Albert Street at Te Waihorotiu Station.
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Kia ora
There’s plenty to celebrate this June as Te Waihorotiu and Karanga-a-Hape Stations continue to take shape, moving us closer to handover to Auckland Transport and KiwiRail.
At Te Waihorotiu Station, June has seen major changes both above and below ground. Mayoral Drive is being transformed from a busy construction zone back into a road, ready to reopen in August. Key streetscape details, including new handrails along Victoria and Albert Streets and upgrades to the Albert Street slip lane, are also coming together. Inside the station, permanent lighting and gatelines are now on, bringing the concourse and platforms to life.
At Karanga-a-Hape Station, progress is equally strong. The noise shed has been removed, paving work is advancing, and entire floors are being commissioned.
Read on to see more highlights from both stations. If you have any questions or concerns about our works at Karanga-a-Hape or Te Waihorotiu Stations, please don’t hesitate to contact us via email at karangahape@linkalliance.co.nz or aotea@linkalliance.co.nz. You can also call us on 0800 CRL TALK (275 8255).
Ngā mihi,
The Karanga-a-Hape and Te Waihorotiu Station teams.
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Te Waihorotiu Station update: streetscapes
In the streets and spaces around Te Waihorotiu Station, over June you might have noted some big transformations along with some subtle finishing touches. Mayoral Drive, from the intersection of Wellesley Street to Myers Street, is being transformed from a construction site into a road, ready to return to service in August. Smaller but equally important details have also been completed, including the installation of handrails along Victoria Street and Albert Street.
Great progress has been made on the upgrade of the Albert Street slip lane. Half of the new footpath is laid and the northern section is on track to be completed before the end of July.
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Above: Rolling, rolling, rolling… the rollers are hard at work compacting the basecourse of the reconstructed road outside the Mayoral Drive entrance to Te Waihorotiu Station. Once compacted, the surface is allowed to dry before three layers of asphalt are laid in the first week of July.
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Above: Looking west along Victoria Street towards the Sky Tower, we can see paving is complete, the handrail is in place, and cladding along the edge of the Victoria Street entrance to Te Waihorotiu Station is underway. This section of Victoria Street West forms an important part of Te Hā Noa and will provide a generous space for pedestrians and cyclists as they make their way through the city centre and to and from the busiest public transport hub in the country.
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Historic bluestone kerbstones are gently laid in place along the Albert Street slip lane. Each stone weighs approximately 70 kg, making the lifting gear a much-appreciated technical innovation. When these stones were first laid in 1881, many more hands were required!
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Te Waihorotiu Station update
Progress in Te Waihorotiu Station is similar to the urban realm – some transformational changes along with lots of finishing details. The ongoing programme of livening electrical systems means the permanent lighting is now on, as well as the gatelines to access the concourse and platforms. Some of the finer details completed in June include the grouting of the exterior cladding of the station entrances at Victoria Street and Albert Street.
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Above: Permanent lighting is now live along the concourse of Te Waihorotiu Station. A combination of LED strip lights and downlights create a brightly lit station environment. Additional daylight will be admitted through seven skylights that represent seven of the nine stars of Matariki – Ururangi, Waipunarangi, Matariki, Tupu-ā-rangi, Tupu-ā-nuku, Waitā and Waitī.
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Above: Entrance signage is in place at the Albert Street entrance to Te Waihorotiu Station. Outside, finishing touches are progressing, including grouting of the cladding.
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Woolly blankets for winter… the gatelines at the Victoria Street end of the concourse are now in place and electrified. Soft protective blankets cover them until the station opens to its first passengers in 2026.
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Te Waihorotiu Station - upcoming works
Quarter three will see major progress in the streets and spaces around the station. The CRL- constructed section of Te Hā Noa will be complete, the northern arm of the Albert Street slip lane will be finished and the reconstruction of the intersection of Wyndham Street and Albert Street will be underway. Meanwhile in the station, toilet and changing facilities will progress and final areas of cladding will be completed, along with much more!
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Karanga-a-Hape Station - Mercury Lane
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In another sign that the project is entering its final stages, June saw the removal of the large noise shed at the bottom of Mercury Lane - the image above shows the final piece of steel framing being removed.
Noise sheds are unusual on construction sites, but this one played a critical role – allowing the team to work 24 hours a day, six days a week without disturbing the community above. Thanks to this setup, when the tunnel boring machine (TBM) broke through to Karangahape Station in 2021, it emerged into already mined tunnels and platforms, saving a considerable amount of time.
The shed was home to key infrastructure, including the spoil storage area, ventilation systems for mining, and a 50-tonne overhead gantry crane used to move equipment and spoil in and out of the temporary shaft. The structure itself was clad with noise-reduction material and measured approximately 46 metres long, 39 metres wide, and 16 metres high.
With its job now done, the shed has been dismantled and will soon begin a new – and quiet life in Whangarei.
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Above: The Mercury Lane entrance basking in the winter sun, as seen from Cross Street.
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The three aboveground levels at the Mercury Lane entrance building are now being completed level-by-level.
These back-of-house areas contain critical equipment essential for operating a modern train station - including electrical and power systems, fire safety systems, communications and signalling equipment, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
The team is now completing the fit-out level by level: Level 1 is finished – as seen in the images below – Level 2 is nearly complete, and work on Level 3 will follow.
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At street level, in the main entrance foyer, the giant pupurangi (kauri snail) shells are being installed and will really start to take shape in the coming weeks. A glimpse of things to come can be seen below.
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On the first and second underground levels paving work is nearing completion. The image below shows a completed area of tiling covered with protective sheets. It also highlights another work area with the escalator lighting and commissioning ongoing.
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The main focus for paving is currently at platform level, 27-metres beneath Mercury Lane. As shown in the images below, work is well underway on laying the terrazzo tiles. These distinctive tiles feature throughout CRL stations. Terrazzo is created by embedding chips of marble, quartz, granite, glass, or other materials into a cement or epoxy base, which is then ground and polished to a smooth, glossy finish.
The first image looks east from the landing area, showing the connecting passage to the southbound platforms. The second image looks in the opposite direction, back through the same passage.
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Other highlights from Mercury Lane in June include the completion of the roof and commissioning of the air conditioning system, which has now been installed throughout the building.
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Karanga-a-Hape Station - Beresford Square
Excellent progress continues to be made at the Beresford Square entrance. Above ground, the intricate paving area around the bicycle racks is now complete, and basalt cladding is being installed on the service block behind the entrance building.
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Above: ten new bike racks behind the station. Below: Basalt cladding being attached to the service building.
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Behind the service block in Beresford Square, the team has completed the concrete-lined tree pit, as seen above. This pit will be home to five mature rewarewa trees, scheduled for planting in September. Its generous size gives the trees an excellent chance to thrive, while the sturdy concrete walls ensure the road will not be compromised if the trees ever need to be replaced in the distant future.
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Underground at Beresford, as at Mercury Lane, there’s a big push to get the terrazzo pavers installed. The image below is taken from the top of the escalator before it descends to the ticketing area – note the shadow of the escalator. The floor here has been cleared in preparation for the pavers to be laid.
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Above: Directly beneath the escalator — and in front of the ticketing area — terrazzo pavers are being laid. Across this floor, the second underground level, sections of paving are nearing completion.
The image below shows the view beneath the first set of escalators, with the lift connecting Beresford Square to the ticketing area visible in the centre-left of the picture.
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