Kia ora,

This month City Rail Link Ltd confirmed its new revised budget and completion date, due to the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent impacts on supply chain, labour costs, resourcing and materials. The cost of the project is now estimated to be $5.493bn with a new completion date of November 2025.

A large portion of the additional projected time is for underground testing and commissioning which are independent from surface level streetscape works. Streetscape work on Victoria Street has begun and is expected to be mostly complete by approximately the end of 2023. We remain committed to accelerating and completing streetscape construction in front of businesses and residential properties, and minimising these impacts and timeframes as much as possible. 
 
The Link Alliance Small Business Support Programme will soon open for 2023 applications to complement our existing package of community support including our new “Win Win Wednesday” campaign to drive visitation to local businesses.  For more visit our business support page here.
 
CRL Ltd’s Targeted Hardship Fund also remains open for applications.

As always, to contact us here at Te Waihorotiu Station you can email us at: aotea@linkalliance.co.nz or call 0800 CRL TALK (0800 275 8255 and press option 3) to speak to us. 

Kind regards,

Station names confirmed: We are Te Waihorotiu

The names – Maungawhau Railway Station, Karanga-a-Hape Railway Station, Te Waihorotiu Railway Station and Waitematā Railway Station – were gifted to the people of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland by City Rail Link’s Mana Whenua Forum.

Te Waihorotiu will be New Zealand’s busiest rail station when the CRL opens and its name is a direct link to the past when the Wai Horotiu stream flowed below nearby Queen Street and provided a service to local people.

Community and business support

Faces of Te Waihorotiu Station

Hundreds of us come to work each day at Te Waihorotiu Station and we all have a story to tell. Each month we aim to profile some of our crew. This month we turn the spotlight on Terah Lee McClutchie, Traffic Controller. Watch her story here. 

Te Waihorotiu Station construction progress

• Building glazing (glass) installation has now been completed on the Mayoral Drive side of the entrance building. Installation of the shadowbox façade - above the glazing - will start soon. 
• Fit-out inside the building is well underway - this includes plasterboard, painting, lift shafts, ventilation and safety systems, and of course preparation for the impressive entrance hallway ceiling. Watch this space. 

• Installation of OCE (over concourse extract) steel support frames along the full length of the concourse level as part of the station's ventilation system is well underway.
• Installation of galvanised steel cable trays (which will house the station’s electrical and communications cables) is almost complete.
• Back-of-house office and plant rooms are progressing well in various stages from concrete blockwork through to final plastering/painting. 
• We are also excited to be preparing for the first lift installation happening soon!

• The platform itself continues to grow - we are not far from structural completion of the approx. 200m platform, after which point we'll begin installing platform floor tiles.
• OTE (over track extract) ventilation ducting has been fully completed across the front-of-house areas on this level.
• Just below the OTE, steel support frames for the train platform screen door system (PSD) are being installed. The PSD is built to future-proof for the possible installation of platform screen doors, should Auckland Transport choose to do so in the future as the station gets busier. 

• The extension of the concrete running tunnel “boxes” from Waitematā Station to Te Waihorotiu Station has wrapped up – including all outer walls, central walls and box roofs located under Albert Street. This means that rail track is not far from being installed through Te Waihorotiu Station (it’s already being installed in the rail corridor between Waitematā & Te Waihorotiu).
• Above the tunnels, the team is now back-filling the area with granular material and building back up to road level. The area will eventually be asphalted and fully re-opened as a road as part of our streetscape enhancement and upgrade programme.

• Our streetscape reinstatement programme is now fully underway on Victoria Street. The first stage of these works is connecting upgraded utility services to businesses and properties. Works on Victoria Street, and some parts of Albert Street north of Victoria Street, are the focus areas for 2023.
• Our concrete and paving subcontractor, Contrax, has now begun work on site beginning with excavation of the tree pit where the historic Harvey Tree will be replanted (near 102 Albert St). Watch our social media channels during April for a progress update and photos. 
• There will continue to be several pedestrian diversions in order to complete these works safety and on-time. Access to businesses will be maintained. When works are noisy, sound mats will be in place. 
• Safety and security across the site is a key focus, and we continue to work with Heart of the City, NZ Police, Auckland Council and Auckland Transport to address any safety issues.
• Surface works will continue through the Easter break, however these are largely Vector upgrade works (independent from Link Alliance works).