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Perth City Link is an urban renewal and redevelopment project under construction in Perth, Western Australia.
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The project, bounded by the Mitchell Freeway, Wellington Street, the Horseshoe Bridge and Roe Street is being conducted on what was formerly land involved in the Perth/City railway yard and dedicated railway property west of Perth railway station. The land was used from the 1880s until the late 1990s by the railways, and by the time of early proposals for the project was no longer being used by the railway.
The project involves the sinking of the Fremantle railway line and Wellington Street Bus Station and the subsequent development of the 13.5 hectares of land reclaimed.
Rail
The $360 million rail project was the first stage of the Perth City Link. The scope of works included:
Work commenced in 2010 with the project initially scheduled for completion in mid-2014. By early 2013 the project was running six months ahead of schedule.
Tunneling commenced on 31 January 2012, with Premier Colin Barnett, Transport Minister Troy Buswell, Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi and Senator Louise Pratt (representing Federal Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese) taking part in a ceremony in which several documents were placed in a time capsule and buried at the station, to be unearthed in 2031.
After a six-day shutdown, trains began running through the new tunnel on 18 July 2013.
The final part of the project, the pedestrian underpass, was officially opened on 19 December 2013, signaling the completion of the rail project, six months ahead of schedule.
Bus
The $249 million Perth Busport was the second stage of the Perth City Link. It involved the demolition of the Wellington Street Bus Station, which opened in 1973, and the construction of Australia's first dynamic stand allocation underground bus station at the same location. It opened on 17 July 2016.
The Arena
Located at the western end of the site, this precinct centres around the Perth Arena.
King-Lake Street
In late January 2014 Leighton Properties started construction on the King Square precinct on the former Perth Entertainment Centre site. Four office buildings were constructed with Shell Australia, John Holland Group and HBF as tenants. In May 2013, three of the buildings were sold to the Dexus Property Group. The buildings (along with the precinct) were completed in December 2015 and tenanted by early 2016.
Yagan Square
Yagan Square, named after the indigenous warrior, will be a 1-hectare (2.5-acre) public space located between the arms of the Horseshoe Bridge.
Previous proposal
In the late 1960s, the government invited private developers to submit proposals to place the railway underground releasing 52 acres for redevelopment. Financing issues saw the project abandoned.