High velocity trains full steam ahead through new Arden Station in North Melbourne

Jacinta Allan has hailed “another big milestone” for the Metro Tunnel, with Arden Station nearing completion.

The first of five new Metro Tunnel underground stations is almost complete, with high-velocity test trains running through the up-and-coming North Melbourne precinct.

Platform screen doors, a towering brick arched entrance and a skylight above the 14m underground concourse and platform have all been fitted at Arden Station, which is nearing completion ahead of the Metro Tunnel opening in 2025.

Arden Station, the first of five new underground stations that make up the Metro Tunnel, is expected to be finished by the end of the year. Picture: Carly Douglas

Premier Jacinta Allan at the station on Thursday. Picture: Carly Douglas

Premier Jacinta Allan, who visited the site along with Minister for Transport Infrastructure Danny Pearson and Minister for Precincts Colin Brooks on Thursday, said the finishing touches were expected to be finished by the end of the year.

“This is another big milestone for the Metro Tunnel,” she said.

Above ground construction and landscaping at Arden Station is almost complete. Picture: Carly Douglas

Ms Allan said the government was calling for the private sector to get involved, with the expression of interest process opening in early 2024.

The former industrial site will also be transformed into new homes for 20,000 Victorians by 2051, including affordable housing that prioritises key workers.

The precinct will also sit across from the $5 billion expansion of the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Royal Women’s Hospitals.

The twin 9km tunnels under Melbourne’s CBD will connect the Sunbury and Cranbourne/Pakenham lines, creating an end-to-end rail line from the northwest to the southeast.