METRONET is the single largest investment in public transport that Perth has seen, with a vision to create a better-connected city with more transport, housing, and employment choices.
With approximately 72kms of new passenger rail and 22 new stations, METRONET is a catalyst to turn more than 8,000 hectares of land around new stations into desirable places to live, work, and play.
As part of the NEWest Alliance, AECOM is delivering the detailed design and engineering services for the Yanchep Rail Extension (YRE) and Thornlie Cockburn Line (TCL) projects after successfully delivering the tender design requirements, including developing an approach that optimised value engineering, constructability, risk, and safety in design.
Yanchep Rail Extension The YRE involves extension of the existing Joondalup line from Butler to Yanchep with three new stations built at Alkimos, Eglinton, and Yanchep. The scope includes 14kms of rail alignment with 25kv AC electrification, associated signalling and communications systems, 11 new road-over-rail bridges and several environmental crossings in a greenfield environment.
Thornlie Cockburn Line The TCL is a new 16km passenger brownfield railway link between Thornlie Station and Cockburn Central Station, with two new stations at Nicholson Road and Ranford Road and major river and road over bridges. The TCL requires converting the existing single-track railway between Beckenham Junction and Thornlie Station to a double track and the relocation of 12km of existing operational Arc Infrastructure freight lines and components. The project includes significant rail layout and systems alterations at the Cockburn, Thornlie, and Perth Stadium Stations.
The design, developed by the AECOM, BG&E and Arcadis design joint venture (ABA JV), relies on implementing critical success factors to support the NEWest Alliance through the design, construction, testing and commissioning, and operations and maintenance phases of the project, such as:
Compliance with the Office of National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR)*italic text* The ABA JV developed a system of safety assurance activities and processes within the early stages of the project to mitigate the risks to the project associated with ONRSR project stage gate approvals. These processes include safety in design, hazard logs, and design submission safety statements.
Sustainability considerations and outcomes for the whole of life of the works*italic text* The ABA JV is working with the NEWest Alliance in managing and reporting on a Sustainability Opportunities Register to document and ensure timely communication of appropriate sustainability initiatives to be included in detailed design submissions. Items listed on the register include station roofs, designed to maximise natural ventilation by including ridge vents, louvre panels and whirlybirds, or the opportunity to specify concrete mixes with a minimum percentage of fine aggregates using manufactured sand, as well as investigating the opportunity to substitute natural sand for manufactured sands.
Liaison and interaction with the PTA rail operations team to best manage system closures*italic text* The ABA JV is working with the NEWest Alliance and PTA operations to determine the most effective rail closure strategy to ensure delivery of the physical works within a live rail environment. The strategy aimed to minimise the extent and duration of closures on various operational lines on the PTA network, particularly the Perth to Mandurah line while enabling high-quality and safe works. The shutdown strategy continues to take into account the key factors for the PTA operations such as peak patronage demand and event days from the Optus Stadium.
The successful management of interfaces with others on sites that are heavily constrained, and with limited access.*italic text* The ABA JV have implemented a full digital engineering strategy to support the METRONET Project to manage interfaces. This is primarily through the development of an LOD300 federated model and clash detection through the use of Revisto. The Thornlie Cockburn Line has a significant number of congested locations such as Ranford Road where the existing two-lane (in either direction) bridge is to be replaced by a three-lane (in either direction) bridge, which currently allows road traffic to pass over the existing Arc Infrastructure freight railway. This area is congested with several key utilities such as BP Oil, ATCO and APA Gas Mains, as well as a HV line that passes overhead. To ensure the safe construction of the new works, the model has been developed to allow for the stage works to be visualised within a 4D model environment, providing confidence in the construction methodology and ensuring the impact on the existing freight line and road traffic are minimised.
Constant and effective engagement with all relevant stakeholders*italic text* The ABA JV recognise the importance of stakeholder communication and are providing a regular presentation to local communities, government agencies, and key stakeholders such as ARC Infrastructure or Main Roads Western Australia (MRWA). These presentations are to capture the stakeholder requirements within the early stages of the project. These, together with additional controls identified through Safety in Design process, constitute derived requirements. All requirements are documented within the Requirements Management software, DOORS NG (Next Generation), and are verified and validated as ‘satisfied’ as the project develops through the design process.
Agility in design to allow for optimisation and scheduling improvements*italic text* The ABA JV has been working with the NEWest Alliance Construction team to identify critical constructability constraints and to amend the design where practical to deliver value-engineered solutions and schedule savings. The development of top-down construction methodologies on a number of road overbridges and retaining structures have improved the construction schedule on the Yanchep Rail Extension. The use of a Deep Soil Mix Retaining Wall solution is currently being trialled to minimise the retaining wall costs and provide a durable solution that has 120 years design life.
Due to the scale and nature of the project, the ABA JV is currently using a global delivery model, with project resources spread across Australia and New Zealand as well as internationally, with bridge structures being designed and developed in Madrid, rail systems resources in India, and digital engineering resources based in Manilla.