Laing O'Rourke secures contract to transform Sydney's Central Station

The New South Wales Transport Minister Andrew Constance has confirmed Laing O'Rourke has secured the contract to build the new Sydney Metro platforms at Central Station. The contractor will also be responsible for building Central Walk, a new underground concourse designed to simplify pedestrian connectivity throughout Sydney's primary rail terminal.

Billed as the biggest improvement to the station in decades, the contract awarded to Laing O'Rourke is valued at $955 million and will see new entrances and simpler interchanges to Central Station.

This is the start of Central's long-awaited renewal, bringing new entrances and simpler interchanges that will make life so much easier for customers.

Central Station is the gateway to our great city, and we are working to develop a station that blends heritage with innovative design on par with other grand stations around the world.

Andrew Constance - NSW Transport Minister

The contract for Central station includes:

• Excavation and construction of the new underground Sydney Metro platforms beneath existing platforms 13 and 14.
• Central Walk - a new 19-metre wide underground concourse from Chalmers Street which will connect with existing train services, the new Sydney Metro platforms, new and existing light rail services and buses.
• Platforms 12 through to 23 will be accessible through escalators for the first time

Work is to be carried out underground and during Sydney Train's scheduled maintenance periods, with the completion of the Central Walk and Central Station metro upgrade contract is expected in 2022.

Sydney Metro is a 66km driverless train line that is being built in two stages. The first stage - dubbed Sydney Metro Northwest - runs from Cudgerong Road in Rouse Hill to the major north shore centre of Chatswood.

It involves a combination of elevated and underground track being built from Sydney's outer north west to Epping, with the Epping to Chatswood railway line that opened in 2009 re-purposed for the new trains and operating equipment required.

The Cudgerong Road to Chatswood first phase will be operational in 2019 and the second phase from Chatswood to Bankstown is expected to be complete by 2024.

The second phase - dubbed Sydney Metro City & Southwest - of the first Sydney Metro line will involve new tunnels from Chatswood down to the lower north shore and under Port Jackson, Barangaroo, the CBD. It will ultimately surface on the existing Bankstown line at Sydenham. 

The existing rail line between Sydenham and Bankstown will be closed and re-purposed for the exclusive use of the new Sydney Metro trains and operating equipment.

The Central Walk and Central Station contract is a key milestone in the development of the second phase of the Sydney Metro.