Diggers to be buried at HS2 station to await inexperienced mild on Euston extension
E
ngineers constructing the Old Oak Common station in west London want to future-proof Euston as the ultimate terminus of HS2 with diggers buried on web site.
Two tunnel boring machines can be lowered into an underground chamber at Old Oak Common subsequent 12 months to await the inexperienced mild from ministers on extending the high-speed rail route into central London — its initially meant vacation spot.
It comes after Transport Secretary Mark Harper introduced in March that work at Euston can be paused for 2 years as prices had ballooned to £4.8 billion in contrast with an preliminary funds of £2.6 billion.
We will really retailer them for use as soon as there’s a Government determination to progress on in the direction of Euston
The pause means Old Oak Common would be the high-speed railway’s solely London station when providers to and from Birmingham start.
Passengers travelling to and from central London might want to take Elizabeth line providers to proceed their journey into the center of the capital.
Huw Edwards, HS2 Ltd’s challenge consumer for Old Oak Common, stated “nothing” his building staff was doing would “preclude continuation of the railway to the destination that we all want, which is Euston”.
Speaking from the work web site, he advised the PA news company: “We will be dropping two tunnel boring machines into the HS2 box here towards the east end, in the Euston direction, during next year.
“When we do that, we will actually store them to be used once there is a Government decision to progress on towards Euston.”
While HS2 passenger providers usually are not because of start for at the very least six years, Mr Edwards stated the pair of German-built diggers wanted to be lowered into the holes in 2024 to permit for added prepare tracks to be constructed excessive, with the Great Western principal line to be widened as a part of the Old Oak Common improvement.
“We cannot wait, otherwise we would not be able to open the widened conventional station,” Mr Edwards continued.
“However, what we are not doing, we are not precluding tunnelling in the future in the Euston direction, to that destination.”
Should the Old Oak Common to Euston leg — a distance of round 5 miles — be given the go-ahead, Mr Edwards stated the tunnelling work and the each day operation of the foremost transport hub within the west London suburbs “could happen in parallel if necessary”.
The two boring machines can be named and blessed in a ceremony — with a statue of St Barbara, the patron saint of tunnelling, used throughout the Christian service — earlier than they’re lowered right into a deep chamber subsequent 12 months and coated over to await their potential dig in the direction of Euston.
With the diggers probably because of be saved for years, engineers can be despatched right down to routinely perform upkeep on the 2 heavyweight machines.
The diggers can be positioned underground in order that tunnelling work may be carried out instantly if ministers approve the Euston improvement, with out the machines needing to be moved and with the freshly laid prepare tracks above unaffected.
HS2 was initially scheduled to open in 2026, however this has been delayed to between 2029 and 2033 because of building difficulties and rising prices.
HS2 trains at the moment are not anticipated to run to Euston till 2041 on the earliest.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has stated he’s dedicated to delivering the Euston terminal regardless of studies earlier this 12 months suggesting Old Oak Common might turn into the everlasting London terminus for HS2 because of rising issues over prices.
Mr Edwards, who additionally labored on the Nineties Jubilee line extension to Stratford throughout his profession, stated modelling carried out by HS2 steered travellers might proceed to alight at Old Oak Common even when the high-speed route was prolonged to Euston because of its connections into London’s procuring and finance districts.
Mr Edwards stated: “I think what we will probably see when Old Oak Common comes on stream is people will realise that the connection to the Elizabeth line, giving direct connection to the West End, the City and Canary Wharf, is actually a connection that people didn’t realise was going to be there.
“I’m not expecting, and my understanding from the wider HS2 team is, we are not expecting all those people who couldn’t go to Euston initially to then switch onto that Euston journey because we think a proportion will have realised that actually the onward journey … is actually good from Old Oak Common.
“The other thing is that people will get into a working regime, a knowledge and usage of Old Oak Common, and we think – we expect – a series of those to stay with that journey.”
Old Oak Common, which has a £2.5 billion funds, would be the UK’s largest newly constructed railway station when opened.
Its 14 platforms, with six devoted to high-speed providers, are anticipated to have the ability to deal with round 250,000 passengers per day when HS2 is totally developed.
Fast trains working from Birmingham Curzon Street would be the first to reach into Old Oak Common’s platforms, with the Birmingham to Crewe leg of HS2 delayed by at the very least two years.