Green spine to open in early 2026, stations to sit empty after completion next year
During this year’s budget hearings, Newton blamed a number of factors for the delays: 148 days of strike by workers in 2024.
On Saturday, Newton said the project was “well past the halfway mark” as the end of the year approached and said the delivery authority had largely completed construction on four CBD stations.
“A lot of work has been done through keyhole surgery effectively at ground level [and] Underground,” Newton said.
“We will see a lot of construction work and architectural structures in the next 12 months. [works] Completed.
“In the meantime, we are planning the next phase, which is testing and commissioning, and this is a very complex project with many moving parts.”
Newton said there are above-ground elements, including the Albert Street “green spine,” a pedestrian plaza that runs through the city between Elizabeth and Mary streets.
Graeme Newton, general manager of the Cross River Rail Delivery Authority.Credit: Catherine Strohfeldt
“There has been significant progress; there are sections that have already been opened,” he said.
“Early next year we will see the first section open towards Charlotte Street, and then the next section will gradually open as it is made safe for pedestrians to pass through.”
Newton said parts of the Brisbane CBD close to the green spine will be roped off throughout December and into January to allow for more intensive work at street level. Train travel will also be restricted.
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“This is really the best time of year to do this… We’re relocating tracks, signals, overhead lines; these things can’t be done when trains are running over them,” he said.
Russell Vine, CRR’s general manager of communications, said the expansive design of the tunnel and stations would create a “giant underground boulevard” and eliminate the claustrophobia created by much underground infrastructure.
“Stations [to be] “They’re really generous with space, so sometimes you go into subway stations and they feel quite closed in,” he said.
“If you go to the Elizabeth line in London, or the new metro line in Sydney, or if you go to Melbourne, it’s quite curvy, we’re really angular and wonderful here, and that’s because the architect who designed the stations wanted it to be an homage to the porch of a Queensland house.”
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