Willoughby to North Chatswood

To deliver fast, safe and reliable train services, the project requires two independent electrical supplies – one at each end of the project. In addition to a supply to the Sydney Metro Trains Facility at Rouse Hill, Transport for NSW (TfNSW) will build a dedicated 33 kilovolt (kV) underground connection from Ausgrid’s Willoughby Subtransmission Substation to Transport for NSW’s North Chatswood traction substation.

Works began in mid-2016 with detailed investigation of existing services on a route between Artarmon and Chatswood.

Trenching works began in January 2017, with the first section of works focused on Hampden Road between Jersey Road and Brand Street, Artarmon.

Crews will continue pit and trench construction along the route using worksites of approximately 50 metres length which will relocate as the works progress.  It is expected works will be completed in mid-2018. Once installation of the feeder line is complete, the line will be owned by TfNSW.

Residents and businesses in close proximity to the work area will receive more detailed information prior to the work commencing in that zone.

The program comprises:

• installation of underground conduits and cables from Ausgrid’s Willoughby Subtransmission Substation (Clarendon Street, Artarmon) to the TfNSW Chatswood North Traction Substation (William Street, Chatswood). The cabling will be installed generally using a standard trenching methodology for most of the alignment, with under boring expected to be used for the crossing of the Gore Hill Freeway at Artarmon.

• installation of a cable tray over the North Shore Line (a structure to carry electrical cables over the railway tracks) to provide a connection between Waratah Street and the Chatswood North Traction Substation.

Installation of cables in buried conduits including:

• high voltage cables in 200-millimetre diameter conduits; 

• communication and control cables in 63-millimetre diameter conduits.

Associated infrastructure that will be installed as part of the main conduit and cable works including:

• about 16 cable pulling and jointing pits along the alignment (about every 300-400 metres)
• about 20 communications pits along the alignment 

• about five ancillary and/or access pits 

• connection of the feeder line to the Willoughby Subtransmission Substation and the Chatswood North Traction Substation
• operation and maintenance of the underground conduits and cables.

TfNSW undertook a Review of Environmental Factors (REF), environmental planning approval for the project. The REF (PDF 17.2MB) assessed the construction, operation and maintenance of the power line.

The REF was exhibited for a period of four weeks in October 2015. During this time TfNSW received 43 submissions from the community.

Submissions were received from residents, businesses, community groups and Willoughby City Council. Community interest groups and associations also provided submissions including the Artarmon Progress Association, Artarmon Village Inc. and the Artarmon Public School P&C.

A Submissions Report (PDF 2.4MB) details the feedback received and responds to the issues raised. It is available to be viewed in full at sydneymetro.info/northwest and so is the community newsletter (PDF 403KB), which was distributed in March 2016.

Most community submissions were concerned about the proposal’s traffic, transport, access, design development and socio-economic impacts.

TfNSW acknowledges that the work will impact on the local community and will work hard to mitigate this via careful planning and rigorous on the ground project and traffic management.