Crossrail has finished the first of its new train tunnels under London – and overall tunnelling activity is now half way to being completed.

Tunnel boring machine Phyllis ended her 7.25km journey from Royal Oak in west London to Farringdon last Thursday, 17 months after the drive began. She will now be dismantled and removed through a shaft in Fisher Street.

Taken together with the work of the other six machines, 21km of the 42km of new railway tunnels has now been built.

A second machine, Ada, is in the Holborn area and is due to complete tunnelling this winter. Another six machines will finish their work next year.

Crossrail programme director Andy Mitchell said: “Construction continues to move ahead at a significant pace. Six tunnelling machines are currently hard at work constructing more than 100m of new tunnel each day."

This week the final precast concrete rings will be cast at Crossrail’s temporary concrete segment factory for the western tunnels at Old Oak Common. The rings are erected by the tunnelling machine as it excavates earth and moves forward underground.

More than 1000 people are working on the western tunnel section of the project, building train tunnels between Royal Oak and Farringdon, and passenger, platform and service tunnels for new stations at Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road and Farringdon.

Another 9000 people are working across the project. Crossrail is set to boost rail capacity in London by 10% and is to open in 2018.

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