South Australia’s biggest-ever infrastructure project has reached another major milestone, with the third and final giant tunnel boring machine (TBM) officially blessed ahead of its underground journey, as an upgraded community information centre prepares to reopen in Hilton.
From Monday, residents will once again be able to visit the revamped T2D Community Information Centre on South Road, located less than 200 metres from where the 100-metre-long machine, named Elizabeth, was blessed on Saturday morning.
The reopening comes as the River Torrens to Darlington (T2D) Project prepares for a historic first. Next month, three large-scale tunnel boring machines will be operating simultaneously on the same Australian road project.
Mary is already tunnelling beneath Adelaide, while Catherine is preparing to begin alongside her from Clovelly Park. Elizabeth will soon join them, launching from Hilton and excavating more than two kilometres north towards the Brickworks.
Once she completes the first northern tunnel, Elizabeth will undergo an enormous engineering transformation. The machine will be dismantled into smaller components, with its 2,000-tonne cutterhead, front shield and main drive remaining together as a single piece, before being turned around and reassembled to bore the southbound tunnel back towards Hilton.
Like Mary and Catherine, Elizabeth has been named after a pioneering South Australian woman. The machines honour Mary Lee, Catherine Helen Spence and Elizabeth Webb Nicholls, recognising their contributions to South Australia’s history.
Saturday’s blessing also continued a centuries-old tunnelling tradition dating back to the 1500s, when miners sought the protection of Saint Barbara, the patron saint of those working underground. Catholic priest Father Lancy conducted the ceremony before Elizabeth begins her journey beneath Adelaide.
Each TBM is an engineering giant, measuring around 100 metres long, 15 metres in diameter and weighing approximately 3,500 tonnes. Up to 20 specialised workers will operate each machine around the clock, seven days a week, with each expected to advance between eight and 10 metres per day once tunnelling is underway.
Using three TBMs at once will allow the northern and southern tunnels to be built concurrently, helping keep the project on track for completion by 2031.
Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King said the milestone reflected both the scale of the project and the traditions behind modern tunnelling.
“This huge infrastructure project will connect Adelaide’s north to its south,” she said.
“Once complete, the T2D project will provide drivers with better access to locations like Adelaide Airport, Port Adelaide and the national highway network.”
She said the blessing also recognised the specialised workforce delivering the project, while honouring Elizabeth Webb Nicholls, one of South Australia’s leading suffragettes.
South Australian Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis said reopening the upgraded Community Information Centre would help locals stay informed as construction continued.
“The revamped Community Information Centre on South Road is an important way for local stakeholders to engage directly and stay up to date on this state-shaping project,” he said.
He confirmed the temporary information centre at Brickworks Marketplace in Torrensville would also remain open while major works continued nearby.
Infrastructure and Transport Minister Joe Szakacs said the pace of construction had been remarkable.
“Just over 12 months ago, the Hilton precinct was little more than an empty site,” he said.
“To be standing here today for the blessing of an established TBM that’s about to start tunnelling demonstrates how far we’ve come in a very limited time.”
He described the project as Australia’s first underground road project to use three large-scale tunnel boring machines concurrently.
The River Torrens to Darlington Project is the final 10.5-kilometre section of Adelaide’s North-South Corridor. Once complete, it will create a continuous 78-kilometre, traffic light-free motorway connecting Gawler in the north with Old Noarlunga in the south.
Jointly funded by the Albanese and Malinauskas governments, the $15.4 billion project is South Australia’s largest infrastructure investment, with each government contributing $7.7 billion.
