Client:
ACT Government
Location:
Canberra, ACT
Status:
Completed (2018)
Sustainability:
Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) Council of
Australia Design v1 Excellent Rating
Contact Person:
Nigel Justins
Architectus provided urban design, architecture and landscape design services for winning consortium Canberra Metro. Together, we delivered the first stage of the Canberra Light Rail project.
The project is part of an overall master plan to deliver faster, more convenient and more sustainable transport options for Canberra over the next 20 years.
A major new piece of civic infrastructure
The Canberra Light Rail represented a major public infrastructure development for the Australian capital. The project was unusual for its structure, with two clients in the Canberra Metro consortium – the National Capital Authority and the Transport Canberra department of the Australian Capital Territory Government.
With such high community investment in the Canberra Light Rail, Stage 1 would set the tone for subsequent links. It incorporates a 12.5km link from Gungahlin to Civic (the Canberra CBD), with 13 stops plus a depot, stabling yard and five substations.
Our design not only met but exceeded Canberra Metro’s brief for a high-quality Light Rail link that’s attractive and comfortable. It has created an uplifting civic presence and legacy for future generations.
Benefits revealed, five years after opening
Five years after the completion of our Canberra Metro Stage 1, the ACT Government released its Benefits Realisation Report on the impact of the light rail.
The findings are a rare insight into user experience, helping us answer the ultimate question: how can we design public transport people want to use?
Key benefits include:
– Up to 20% volume reduction of motor vehicle travel in key locations
– Approx. 19% growth in business along travel corridors in the city suburbs
– 100% powered by renewable energy, and
– 20% of all trips on the public transport network via light rail (more than the top three rapid bus routes combined).
High-impact architecture reflecting the city’s landscape
The Canberra Light Rail stops have a towering architectural form reflecting he natural and urban landscapes of Canberra. Both the materials and finishes are consistent with the quality of other landmark buildings in the nation’s capital.
The project represents a world-class urban design solution for Canberra. The link enriches the public domain, stimulates urban renewal, provides sustainable transport and builds community pride and identity.
The character of Canberra’s Federal Highway precinct has also been enhance, with 1200 native trees planted along the link.
As the network approaches the city, the landscape design becomes progressively more formal. The splendour of the track running along Northbourne Avenue recalls Walter Burley Griffin’s original plans for a “Grand Boulevard” parading towards Capital Hill.
A collaborative consortium
The Canberra Metro consortium is made up of Pacific Partnerships, CPB Contractors, John Holland, UGL, Mitsubishi Corporation, and Aberdeen Infrastructure Investments, who all worked with ACT Government client representatives at Transport Canberra, Major Projects Canberra and the National Capital Authority.
Canberra Metro is facilitating the operation and maintenance of the project for an initial 20 year contract period.
Canberra’s Light Rail has achieved a Design v1 Excellent Rating from the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia, the only comprehensive system in AU/NZ for evaluating sustainability across the planning, design, construction and operations phases of infrastructure.
Client:
ACT Government
Location:
Canberra, ACT
Status:
Completed (2018)
Sustainability:
Infrastructure Sustainability (IS) Council of
Australia Design v1 Excellent Rating
Contact Person:
Nigel Justins
Australasian Rail Industry Awards, Rail Sustainability Award, 2020
Nigel Justins
Principal
Sustainability
Sydney
Jane Fielding
Associate Principal
Planner
Sydney
