Trailblazing women honoured as Cross River Rail goes underground

The machines will be lowered into the ground at Woolloongabba in early 2021, with each digging a tunnel under South Brisbane, the Brisbane River, the Queensland University of Technology and Albert Street towards Roma Street.

The Merle and Else will eventually emerge at Normanby late in 2021.

Transport Minister Mark Bailey said he was following a 500-year engineering and mining tradition for naming large pieces of heavy equipment after women.

“They pray to Saint Barbara as a way of recognising good luck and safety,” Mr Bailey said.

“Today we are naming these two groundbreaking machines after these two groundbreaking women in Brisbane and Queensland.”

Mr Bailey paid tribute to the women, saying Professor Shepherd joined the Institute of…