Stage 1 Tunnelling – Rozelle, Balmain and Birchgrove.

The Western Harbour Tunnel is being delivered in two stages. The southern section of the tunnel, Stage 1, is being delivered by John Holland CPB Contractors (JHCPB) and includes the excavation of 1.7km of the tunnel between Emily Street in Rozelle to Cove Street in Birchgrove. This stage is excavation only and does not include tunnel fit-out activities.

Tunnelling started on 29 June 2022 underneath Emily Street, Rozelle and has now crossed under Victoria Road and is under the suburb Rozelle. Tunnelling will continue under the suburb of Balmain around mid-2023 and towards the suburb Birchgrove in 2024.

If your property is located within 50 metres of the outer edge of the tunnels, you will be offered a Property Condition Survey (PCS) before any tunnelling starts near you. The survey is free of charge and will provide you with a clear record of your property’s condition. Eligible residents will be sent an offer for a PCS about 8-12 weeks prior to tunnelling. The project team will make three attempts via post to residential addresses to offer a PCS.

If you are curious about how we manage noise and vibration, we've developed a handy factsheet that provides some in depth information about ground movement and vibration, including what causes it, how we manage it and the claim process in the unlikely event of any property damage. Find out more here.

Project information sessions will be held again in 2023. We recently held information sessions for Balmain residents on the tunnel excavation for WHT Stage 1. You can find a copy of the presentation here. We’ll continue to hold information sessions as we progress with excavation along the tunnel alignment and separate information sessions will be held for each suburb to ensure you get relevant information about timings, ground conditions and tunnel design for your area. At this stage, information session for the suburb of Birchgrove will be held towards the end of 2023.

Click the links below to access further information about Western Harbour Tunnel Stage 1 tunnelling.

Stage 2 includes connections from Stage 1 at Cove Street, Birchgrove, to the Warringah Freeway near North Sydney, and complete tunnel fit-out. More information on Stage 2 can be found here.