Kia ora

Another year is nearly over and it’s been quite the year! 
 
We’d like to start by saying thank you to the Mt Eden community for their patience and support during a tough year for all. We hope that everyone has an enjoyable and restorative festive season and all the best in the new year. 
 
Our sites will be shutting down on 22 December until 5 January. We will have security guards walking the site perimeters daily and 24/7 CCTV but, as always, if you have any questions please contact us on 0800 CRL TALK (0800 275 8255) and press option 5. 

Reflecting on the past year, we are all extremely proud of the dedication and hard work of the Mt Eden Station team despite the unique challenges of working during the Auckland lockdowns.  

Some of our personal highlights include: 

• The launch of Dame Whina Cooper – our Tunnel Boring Machine’s (TBM) first drive  

• Constructing the temporary services bridge on Normanby Road to support pedestrians during the temporary Normanby Road crossing closure 

• Launching our Wellbeing Pilot Programme  

• The opening of our visitor information centre – Te Manawa 

• Excavating more than 256 metres of mined tunnel for our future CRL lines 

• The imminent switch over of the Single Line Running we have been preparing for all year 
   

The progress we have made this year could not have been possible without the support of the incredible Mt Eden community, neighbours and business owners who share our stories, feed our crew, reach out with feedback and welcome us into their neighbourhood.  
 

Again, thank you for all of your support during this challenging year. We hope you have a restful break with your friends and whanau.  
 

Ngā mihi o te Kirihimete me te Tau Hou,  
 

Mt Eden Station team 

Our work over the holiday period 

As part of the City Rail Link works to build twin underground tunnels and connect the future train lines to the existing North Auckland Line (or Western Line), there will be a Christmas Block of Line (BOL) between 26 December 2021 – 23 January 2022, and limited or no trains running on the rail network.   
 

During this time, construction along the North Auckland Line will continue to maintain project momentum. Work will continue through the week, on weekends and on statutory holidays, including some night work.   
 

An essential element of the holiday work programme involves switching 1.3 kilometres of track.  The existing single line through the station site will be removed and trains travelling in both directions switched onto a new section of track.  The switch is one part of a construction programme to connect the Western Line with CRL at a redeveloped Mt Eden Station. 
 

Work across the length of the rail corridor during the Christmas BOL will include:   

• Laying new train tracks which includes tamper and ballast work  
• Ongoing installation of overhead line and track side equipment  
• Construction of the new station overpass bridge 
• Testing and commissioning of rail signalling equipment   
• Removal of the redundant train track and equipment   
• Installation of piling platforms followed by piling activity   
• Hoarding removal and relocation  
• Vehicle movements along the rail corridor. 
   

North Auckland Line Construction Manager Dale Burtenshaw says, “This Block of Line will bring us to a point in the project where we have completed one new track and we can switch to the other – it is a significant milestone that will culminate around January 12 with an overnight train running the length of the newly laid track for the first time” 

Our tunnel teams will take a much-deserved break over Christmas and the New Year.  
 

The TBM and mined tunnel teams will finish their last shift of the year on 22 December, with a small support crew staying on site to keep an eye on this important piece of infrastructure.  
 

From 5 January 2022 the mined tunnel team will kick off the excavation of the third and final portal that the TBM will enter for its second drive. 
 

Once the portal has been broken through, the mined tunnel team will begin excavating the bottom bench or lower half of the stub tunnel. 

Once the TBM has broke through into Aotea Station, the cutterhead and shield (or front end of the TBM) will be dismantled and transported back to the Mt Eden Station site. The supporting gantries (or rest of the machine) will be pulled back through the completed tunnel to Mt Eden over a period of approximately 4-6 weeks. Once all back at Mt Eden, the TBM will be reassembled near the tunnel portal so that it can begin its journey to construct the second CRL tunnel next year. 
 

The large cutterhead and shield will be dismantled into four separate pieces at Aotea Station and transported back to Mt Eden Station in four overnight deliveries, due to the oversized loads. On each occasion, the TBM piece will be loaded onto a large truck with a hydraulic trailer and will leave Aotea Station around 10pm to make its way to Mt Eden, arriving at around 2am.  
 

The first of these deliveries is anticipated to take place overnight in early January for the TBM's cutterhead, with the remaining three pieces to be delivered between late January and mid-February.  

Over the Christmas period, as well as completing important work on the rail corridor during the Block of Line, there will be some civils work on our main site in preparation for the new year and for the TBM’s return. This work will take place from 20 December to 10 January excluding statutory holidays. 
 

The civils work includes rock breaking and excavation for the future CRL platform and constructing the concrete deck and painting for the overpass bridge. 

Celebrating a Mt Eden CRL milestone

This 1.3km of new track is the first to be built by the Link Alliance as part of the City Rail Link project at Mt Eden. Pictured is the first KiwiRail train on the tracks – a DC Locomotive hauling ballast for use in the upcoming works over the Christmas and New Year’s period. Passenger trains will begin using the track from early next year. 
 

We’re another step closer to a world class rail network in Auckland!     

Ka kite anō Elf & Safety Manager 

A few weeks ago, the Link Alliance onboarded a special team member to be our eyes and ears on site. Our Elf & Safety Manager has been helping the team prepare for the upcoming Christmas Block of Line, taking on the role as our live reporter.  
 

If you’ve been following our Elf’s journey on social media, you would have seen that this Elf has been getting up to some mischief on site. During site visits we’ve caught the Elf peeking into the portal, skipping onto the rail track, and even refusing to wear PPE! 
 

Nevertheless, our Elf & Safety Manager has been a great asset to the team and we are sad that the visit has come to an end. We wish our Elf safe travels, and a big ‘Ka kite anō’ heading back to the North Pole site.  

Western fly-over

Another milestone for the CRL project has been completed, the fly-over or bridge structure on the Western Grade Separation (WGS). 
 

The structure is one of several that safely separates the existing Western Line with the new CRL line. Train tracks and overhead lines will be installed on the structure when they are completed. Our very own rail version of Spaghetti Junction! 
 

For those who love the facts and figures - the primary trench structure is approximately 115m in length with a maximum retained height of 7m. Piling was the preferred option for the retaining walls due the strength requirements and ground conditions. The southern wall is a secant piled wall consisting of 900 mm diameter piles at 750mm centres. The northern wall is comprised of 900mm diameter bored piles at close spacing (contiguous) with shotcrete lagging spanning between the piles. A continuous capping beam along the top of the trench walls maintains wall alignment and provides integral connections to the precast concrete struts. 

Take a peek and see what's happening at Basque Park

Around our Basque Park pipe diversion works site we’re starting to fill the blanks with information and art! 
 

Last week our team was busy installing a one-stop-shop information spot at the Rendall Street end of the worksite for all things CRL. If you’ve ever found yourself curious about what goes on behind the hoardings (fences) take a break to read our fun facts and peak through the windows. 
 

In the coming weeks more art will pop up on our hoardings - stay tuned, we'll be sharing the artworks and their stories shortly! 

Normanby Road over-rail bridge barrier

Last month the team began to install the Normanby Road over-rail bridge barriers to the northern span of the new bridge.  
 
The specific design on these barriers was inspired by the Mana Whenua narrative about Mataoho/Mataoho. Mataoho is one of the deities used widely in the Mana Whenua narrative for the entire City Rail Link project. The many volcanic cones in  Tāmaki Makaurau bear this name in some way: Te Ipu Kai a Mataoho/Te Ipu-a-Mataaho for Maungawhau/Mt Eden.  
 
In the design you will see a face. This is Mataoho. The half round beneath is the volcanic cone and in particular the one found at Mt Eden. 
 
The design work either side represents the regrowth of greenery, as moss first, then larger rakau (wood, timber), as the space slowly becomes colonised by the new growth. Rangitoto Island in Tāmaki Makaurau is the best example of this regrowth.  

Mr Whippy is coming to town

After several days of unseasonably wet weather, the first Link Alliance Mr Whippy visit to the Mt Eden community was well received. 
 

As the iconic Greensleeves chime echoed around the community, people were drawn into the streets in mouth-watering anticipation. 
 

Mr Whippy has been providing Kiwi’s with a slice of summer since 1964 and the queues proved that the charm of this vanilla treat has not waned. 
 

The cool treat is a thank you from the Link Alliance for the ongoing support and patience of our Mt Eden neighbours. 
 

Mr Whippy trucks loaded with vanilla goodness will be popping up on the following days:.   

• 12 January – between 11.30 - 1.30    

• 21 January – between 1.30 - 3.30    

The chimes will be heard on:  

• Normanby Road, northern end   

• Enfield Street near Botanica apartments  

• Enfield Street near Mountview Village   

• Akiraho Street, near Mt Eden Road    

• Fenton Street    

• Porters Avenue    

• Link Alliance Infospot  - corner of Nikau and Flower Streets    

• Couldry Street near Basque Park   
   

The truck will stop for 10 minutes at each location. Be in quick! It’s one way for us to tell you how much we appreciate your encouragement, patience, and interest in the project.  

Jargon Buster

The term shotcrete refers to concrete that is sprayed out of a hose. This is a method used to apply concrete to vertical and overhead surfaces.

Because this method of concrete can take any shape and can be sculpted after application, shotcrete is used for a variety of concrete structures, including artificial rock walls, tunnels, zoo enclosures, canopy roofs, pools and dams. 

Applying the concrete in this high velocity technique consolidates the concrete. This makes the concrete less porous which increases the strength.

Update on our information sessions & tours

Our information sessions and perimeter site tours will be paused for the remainder of the year. Usually, they are held on the first Tuesday of every month at our visitor centre at 1 New North Road – Te Manawa.  

We look forward to resuming our information sessions and tours once it is safe to do so, keep an eye out for our communications and as always, if you have any questions about the project, you can contact us on 0800 CRL TALK (press 5 for Mt Eden Station) or mteden@linkalliance.co.nz.  

You can also follow Link Alliance's progress by clicking the social media buttons below: