After almost two years of rumbling under Auckland, a giant boring machine called Alice is due to break through to daylight this morning, leaving twin motorway tunnels in its wake.
The 87m tunnelling machine with a cutting head the height of a four-storey building is expected to break into a deep trench in Alan Wood Reserve, Owairaka, by midday.
That was where it began its 4.8km journey to Waterview and back in November 2013, digging three-lane traffic tunnels each way to connect the Southwestern and Northwestern motorways along Auckland's 48km Western Ring Route between Manukau and Albany.
![Guests from the industries and the community wait for the breakthrough of Alice. Photo / Jason Oxenham](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/KP4GNOUKVTCZ3YTKY73OJR3A7Y.jpg?auth=44331a49a84cdc2af9c89a89c90146ba22ee3111ad46ef313247ba13e0a89fee&width=16&height=11&quality=70&smart=true)
They will be New Zealand's longest road tunnels, each twice the length of the Auckland Harbour Bridge and overtaking the 1.97km traffic link through Christchurch's Port Hills to Lyttelton.