Western Harbour Tunnel Stage Two is a 6.5 kilometre twin tunnel road crossing located under Sydney Harbour in New South Wales, and tunnelling has moved well past the excavation milestones covered previously. Two tunnel boring machines, Barangaroo and Patyegarang, the largest ever assembled underground in the southern hemisphere, launched from Birchgrove in mid-2026 to bore the final 1.5 kilometre stretch beneath the harbour, a task expected to take about a year, with the tunnel still on track to open to traffic in 2028.
Western Harbour Tunnel Progress Runs on a Similar Horizon to Sydney’s Airport Investment
Roadheader excavation on Stage Two’s mainline tunnels has also passed the halfway mark, with more than 666,000 rock bolts installed across both stages and over 5,800 workers having cycled through Stage Two alone. The tunnel’s steady advance toward a 2028 opening runs on a similar multi year horizon to Sydney Airport’s T2-T3 terminal merger, another multi billion dollar commitment reshaping how the city moves, this time through the air rather than under the harbour.
Project Overview
- Project Name: Western Harbour Tunnel Stage Two
- Location: Sydney Harbour, connecting the Warringah Freeway at Cammeray/North Sydney with the Rozelle Interchange, New South Wales, Australia
- Project Value: $4.24 billion Stage Two contract; total project cost including Stage One and enabling works has been reported at up to roughly $7.4 billion by industry sources, though the NSW Government has not confirmed a single consolidated figure
- Client/Owner: Transport for NSW
- Main Contractor: ACCIONA (Stage Two)
- Key Components: 6.5 kilometre twin, three lane road tunnels; two tunnel boring machines, Barangaroo and Patyegarang, excavating the 1.5 kilometre under harbour crossing; six roadheaders excavating mainline tunnels from Cammeray; more than 666,000 rock bolts installed across both stages
- Construction Start: Stage Two major construction began November 2023
- Expected Completion: Under harbour boring expected to take about 12 months from its mid-2026 launch; tunnel remains on track to open to traffic in 2028
Project Team
- Client/Owner: Transport for NSW
- Stage Two Contractor: ACCIONA
- Future Operator: Ventia
- Tolling Services: TransCore
Reported 10th December 2022: Excavation of Western Harbour Tunnel project’s 6.5 km triple-lane road tunnel is now complete. The excavation stretched between Rozelle and Birchgrove and featured in stage 1 of Western Harbour Tunnel project construction.
To the figures: according to CPB Contractors, more than 1 million bank cubic meters (BCM) of earth and rock has been excavated and 26 tunnel crossings have been created. The tunnel crossings lay across the Rozelle Interchange and Sydney Metro West – all achieved without disrupting normal operations. 8.5 km of tunnels has also been excavated in the Western Harbour Tunnel project alongside two underground ventilation caverns. The caverns covered a stretch of 42 meters, and span 19 meters wide and 25 meters high. Approximately 105,000 rock bolts have also been installed by the CPB construction team.
Tunneling work began in mid-2021 and was a JV between CPB contractors for Transport for NSW. Up to date, almost 8.5km of tunnels have been excavated in the Western Harbour Tunnel project. This also includes 2.6km of cross passages, temporary tunnels, and ventilation caverns. Substations have also seen installations since the project began.
The latest achieved milestone in the Western Harbour Tunnel project “lays foundations for the delivery of critical infrastructure that will connect WestConnex in Rozelle with the Warringah Freeway in North Sydney”. Sam Diamond, Project Director at CPB Contractors commented.
Contract awarded for stage two of NSW’s Western Harbour Tunnel project
The contract to deliver stage two of the Western Harbour Tunnel Project in New South Wales was officially awarded by the NSW Government. ACCIONA won the project’s $4.24 billion contract and will thus be responsible for the project’s third harbour crossing development.
The Western Harbour Tunnel will serve as a connection to WestConnex, right at the Rozelle Interchange. It will also cross underneath Sydney Harbour, between Waverton and Birchgrove.
Instead of the construction of an immersed tube tunnel, the project’s tunnel was constructed underground with tunnel boring machines. This caused less general disruption across the construction sites at Berrys Bay and Balls Head in Wavertone.
The project to significantly reduce traffic
The project will immensely contribute towards decreasing travel time between Sydney Olympic Park and North Sydney. This will be offset by approximately 20 minutes.
Furthermore, the Western Harbour Tunnel project will reduce traffic on the Anzac Bridge, as well as the Sydney Harbour Bridge. How? It will provide a western by-pass to the Central Business District (CBD), also taking pressure off other major roads across the city.
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Natalie Ward, the NSW Minister for Metropolitan Roads and the Member for North Shore remarked that the community will gain significant benefits from the project in statements made.
Upon completion, the Western Harbour Tunnel project will cut traffic by 35% within the Western Distributor. It will additionally cut down traffic by 17% on the Harbour Bridge and by 20% on the Sydney Harbour Tunnel.
Alongside further community consultation, major construction works for stage two commenced in late 2023.
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