SYSTRA, Beca, WSP and COX join forces on Waitematā Harbour Connections

Leading design and engineering firms SYSTRA ANZ, Beca, WSP and COX Architecture with EY are delighted to have been chosen as the preferred bidder for additional transport connections across Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland’s Waitematā Harbour. 

Clients Waka Kotahi with partners Auckland Transport and Auckland Council selected the four firms following a competitive tender process. They will work closely with the preferred bidders for Auckland Light Rail, as together the two projects are essential to Auckland’s rapid transit future.

A joint venture partnership between the companies has been established and will now work with the clients to progress planning and design aspects for the next phase of the Additional Waitematā Harbour Connections (AWHC) project.

The AWHC project represents an essential long-term investment in Auckland and New Zealand’s transport future. It seeks to be a catalyst for the public realm, with the design and planning solutions aimed at supporting and improving the functionality of the city and galvanising the community.

The partnership will leverage experience from many successful harbour connection projects. Individual firms in the partnership have previously worked together on projects including Sydney’s Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link, and Sydney Metro City Harbour Crossing. In coming together for the AWHC project they will combine previous local infrastructure experience with international design and engineering best practice.

There has been talk of a second harbour crossing ever since Auckland Harbour Bridge opened in 1959. Fast forward over sixty years, and the additional harbour connection now being investigated will be considering all multi-modal options – including light rail, buses, connections for walking and cycling, vehicles and freight.  

For reasons of environmental sustainability, resilience, and population growth, it’s never been more important for the City of Sails to have an additional integrated, safe, responsive and sustainable additional cross-harbour travel route between the North Shore and Auckland isthmus. Together, the partnership has the drive, capability and capacity to develop and deliver a plan to achieve this.

The partnership looks forward to next steps and working with Waka Kotahi, Auckland Transport, Auckland Council, and the Auckland Light Rail team to bring to life additional harbour connections that will provide Aucklanders with more carbon-friendly transport choice, engage with communities, and rival the very best cross-harbour infrastructure seen anywhere in the world.  

For more information, contact:

AWHC Project Team
awhc@nzta.govt.nz
0800 44 44 49

or

Catherine Reiss
Associate – marketing and communications, Beca
catherine.reiss@beca.com
021 0632 684

More success on the Sydney Metro

SYSTRA has been awarded the Independent Certification Services contract for the Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport Line Project in partnership with KBR, building on its successful collaboration with Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW) on the Sydney Metro West Project.

This award marks the second major services contract SYSTRA and KBR have secured together to ensure the delivery of fast, safe, and reliable rail services across Sydney. The new metro rail will become the transport spine for Greater Western Sydney, connecting communities and travellers with the new Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport and the growing region.

A multi-layered range of responsibilities

The JV will independently certify several work packages, including stations, tracks, signaling, rolling-stock, mechanical and electrical systems. Services will also include full surveillance and design for a stabling and maintenance facility at Orchard Hills, operation and maintenance of the line and its assets, and the construction of the twin metro tunnels, viaducts and at grade infrastructure through design, construction, and completion.

“We are proud to see the SYSTRA-KBR partnership go from strength to strength. Working to independently assure the best outcomes for our state and our community and to unlock the huge potential in Western Sydney as a gateway to the rest of the world is a privilege for us all to work on.”

Alana Newbrook, CEO SYSTRA ANZ

Creating jobs and connecting travellers

Part of a government deal to bring transformative change to the region over the next 20 years, the new railway will link residential areas with job hubs, including the new Aerotropolis, a major industry and innovation hub, and connect travellers from the new airport to the rest of Sydney’s public transport system. It will enhance the liveability of local communities with greener, more connected neighbourhoods and improved access to employment and education centres.

Key features: Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport Line

A major road tunnel opens in Australia with SYSTRA’s help

The SYSTRA team in Australia supported the T&C phase of the NorthConnex motorway subsystems on behalf of the Lendlease Bouygues Joint Venture (LLBJV), which was responsible for designing and building the tunnel for the government of New South Wales (NSW).


SYSTRA’s work on Systems Engineering and Testing activities included the coordination of work on system defects. The team’s engagement was thus extended to work with Kapsch, a provider of intelligent transportation systems, in managing software testing and defects, a crucial aspect of our role.


We are proud to have been part of a mega project for Sydney that changes the way drivers travel across the city. Despite challenges due to the pandemic, work went ahead without interruption and we took the leadership in coordinating the workflow.

Ibrahim Fazah, Principal Consultant – Project & Program Management at SYSTRA

Optimised routes for safer transport


NorthConnex will greatly improve freight access, connectivity and reliability across Greater Sydney and will take up to 5,000 trucks a day off the Pennant Hills Road, one of the most congested roads in NSW. Traffic will be more fluid, with the new infrastructure enabling around 20 sets of traffic lights to be avoided and 15 minutes of journey time to be saved on average.

Among the many features designed to enhance safety, the tunnel has two vehicle crossover points, specifically for emergency services in the event of an incident and will also be one of the first in Sydney to have average speed cameras for heavy vehicles.