Following consultation with industry groups, plans for the $5 billion tunnel project have been refined, taking it on a slightly different route than the one originally planned.

At Woolloongabba, the 15-metre tunnel boring machines – the largest ever to be used in Australia – will dig about 40 metres further to the west of the existing Clem7 tunnels than originally planned.

Across the river, the tunnel will now run under the City Botanic Gardens towards George Street, rather than beneath the Queensland University of Technology Gardens Point campus.

Mr Emerson said the changes were made following an industry briefing in December last year, which was attended by more than 200 representatives from the construction, development, engineering and finance sectors.

Another briefing was planned for Wednesday morning, with the focus to be on the three new bus and train stations at Woolloongabba, George Street and Roma Street.

“Feedback from the first industry briefing has improved the alignment under Woolloongabba and Kangaroo Point, reducing length by 70 metres [and] saving more than $15 million,” Mr Emerson said.

“We will be looking for similar innovations when industry is briefed for the second time today on key elements including depth of the stations and how the project will be built and operated.

“By working with the private sector I believe we can deliver better infrastructure through better planning, creating more than 18,000 full-time jobs.”

Mr Emerson said the changes that arose from the December workshop showed industry had its “finger on the pulse” and could provide valuable input and innovative ideas.

“This is particularly important given the significant engineering work required including stations, tunnels, bridges, new and modified track and rail/bus systems,” he said.

In addition to industry briefings, community information sessions would also be held throughout this month and the project's environmental impact statement was expected to open for comment later this year.