Jigsaw Childcare children visit the machine they named which is helping to build tunnel

Children attending Jigsaw Childcare in Melbourne’s Sunshine North and Milleara Integrated Learning and Development Centre in Melbourne’s Keilor East recently took part in an excursion with a difference, getting the opportunity to see the mini tunnel boring machine they named before it began work on the Melbourne Airport Rail Project.

The children, Star Weekly reported, were given the opportunity to name the machine through a competition, with both centres choosing the name ‘Taylor’ as their preferred choice. Taylor then came to visit the children, with staff from the project teaching the children more about the machines and the project through play-based activities, viewing animations and dressing up in hardhats and safety vests.

Taylor – who is two metres long and half a metre in diameter – is working at Slater Parade, Keilor East. The machine will bore for nearly 50 metres, around six metres below ground, completing up to 12 metres per day.

Work being undertaken at Keilor East and Sunshine North includes the construction of dedicated tracks for the Melbourne Airport Rail services in the existing freight corridor between Sunshine and Airport West.

The new tracks will take trains to the new Keilor East station at Keilor Park, before crossing the Western Ring Road (M80 freeway) and then continuing on an elevated rail line along Airport Drive and arriving at the train station at Melbourne Airport.

The second machine will be launched in Gee Street, Sunshine North to do similar work.

Public Transport Minister and Niddrie MP Ben Carroll told Star Weekly it was great to see the local children and the community getting involved in the project.

To read local coverage of this story, please see here.