City Square temporarily makes way for Melbourne Metro construction

City Square has now temporarily closed - for up to 5 years - to make way for construction to kick off at the southern end of the CBD on the Melbourne Metro tunnel project.

Over the next few weeks fencing is going to be installed around City Square and the public monuments - such as the Burke & Wills statue - will also be moved to make way for the major construction works.

The first order of business after securing the site will be to demolish the three existing levels of car parking for the Westin Hotel that sit at present under the square.

Upon total removal of the car parking levels, a deeper shaft will be excavated which enable heavy construction equipment to be launched that will be used in construction of the station platforms, mezzanine levels and underground connections to Flinders Street and Federation Square as well as the tunnel between both Flinders Street and Melbourne Central stations.

Like at the 'CBD North' site in Franklin Street, acoustic sheds will be erected over the station pit opening to minimise visual and audible noise during the construction period.

It is expected that City Square will be returned to the City of Melbourne as public open space by 2022 and it will feature an entrance to the station underneath.  

The Melbourne Metro Rail Authority has released the following video to illustrate the steps involved with this new round of works in the centre of the city.

See the dedicated CBD South page on the Metro Tunnel website for more information.