Sinkhole halts tunnelling on $26 billion North East Link project​on February 14, 2025 at 3:20 am

Tunnelling on the state government’s $26 billion North East Link has come to a halt after a sinkhole emerged near the road project’s two boring machines.

The 4000-tonne boring machines, named Zelda and Gillian, will stop digging while engineers investigate the problem that occurred near the Lower Plenty worksite.

A Major Road Projects Victoria spokesperson said Zelda would continue moving to a safe location, while Gillian will pause operations after the detection of the “surface hole”. The length of the delay is not yet known.

“There is no risk to the community or property,” the spokesperson said on Friday. “Surface remediation works will be undertaken later today.”

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So far, Zelda has excavated 1.2 kilometres of the North-East Link’s northbound tunnel, while Gillian has completed a bit over 1 kilometre of the southbound tunnel.

The machines were launched from Watsonia in mid-2024 and operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, each with crews of up to 20 people.

The project, which will connect the Eastern Freeway in Bulleen with the Metropolitan Ring Road at Greensborough, is predicted to take 15,000 trucks off suburban streets and cut travel times by half an hour.

The 10-kilometre road has been plagued by budget blowouts, with the most recent estimate in December 2023 putting the cost at $26 billion.