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Waterview Connection 2015 Update

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2014 was a big year for the Waterview Connection Project and 2015 will be even bigger as a huge amount of work needs to be finished by the end of the year.

Most of the constuction in 2015 involves building the second Waterview Connection tunnel and finishing the ramps on to the Great North Road Interchange.

Earlier this year Alice was turned around so she could start the second tunnel. Find out more about Alice's turnaround - PDF.

What’s happening in 2015

February

  • Ramp 4 work begins, this ramp will take traffic from the tunnels onto the eastbound lane towards the city.

March

  • Reopen the Ernie Pinches footbridge to the public.

April

  • Alice is ready to begin boring the northbound tunnel after being turned around
  • Work starts on the tunnels’ 16 cross passages.

May

  • Work begins on the Waterview Reserve playground
  • Valonia Street re-opened to the public
  • Start planting over 250,000 plants alongside the new motorway.

June

  • First cross passage finished to connect the two tunnels.

August 

  • Stage 2 backfill and drains built in the northbound tunnel.

September

  • Southern Vent Building to be finished.

October

  • Tunnelling finished
  • Ramp 4 on the Great North Road Interchange finished.

During the second Waterview Connection field trip

Last year you met Alice the Tunnel Boring Machine as she dug the southbound tunnel. During this year’s field trip you will see Alice at work on the northbound tunnel. You will see how the Great North Road Interchange is being built and meet Dennis the gantry crane. Dennis allows work to be done high above a busy motorway.

The northern end of the Waterview Connection

During the field trip you will be looking at what is happening at the northern end of the Waterview Connection Project. 

This includes:

  • A trench (called the Northern Approach Trench) to take traffic to and from the tunnels
  • This Northern Approach Trench is being built as a cut and cover tunnel
  • A station at the exit is being built to house tunnel services, including the fans that draw in air from the tunnel and send it to a vent stack about 120m away
  • The vent stack is being built
  • Four new ramps at the Great North Road Interchange are being built to connect the tunnels and SH16.

Audio Māori keywords: 

Audio Māori keywords: 

What machines do you think you will see on the field trip and how might this compare to the machines found on other road construction sites. What does this make you wonder about the future of New Zealand's roads?

Once Alice the Tunnel Boring Machine finished boring the first tunnel she had to be turned around to start work on the second tunnel. This, along with maintenance work took nearly six months. Image: NZTA.

The Northern Approach Trench is being built as a cut and cover tunnel. How is this different from the southern tunnel entrance? Image: NZTA.

The Great North Road Interchange will connect traffic from different areas to the tunnels. How is this interchange being built? Image: NZTA.

Dennis is a large, yellow gantry crane used to work high above a busy motorway. Can you find out how Dennis got his name? Image: NZTA.

«Previous
Managing impacts of tunnel construction
Contents: Easy
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Waterview Connection 2016 Update
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