HS2: first concrete pour in West London complete

HS2

Balfour Beatty VINCI, HS2, UK, West London,

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The first concrete pour at Old Oak Common Station in West London has been completed after the excavation of spoil by HS2’s contractor Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV).

Construction of HS2’s station at Old Oak Common continues at pace, with the station box taking shape as workers complete the first base slab concrete pour at the western end.

The 850m station box reaches 20m below ground and is where the six platforms for HS2 trains will be located. The first base slab concrete pour comes after the excavation of approximately 80,000m3  of spoil in the west box by HS2’s station contractor, Balfour Beatty Vinci SYSTRA joint venture (BBVS JV).

The spoil from the excavation is being transported to HS2’s London Logistics Hub at Willesden Euroterminal via a conveyor system, negating the need for lorry movements on local roads. The conveyor began operation in November 2022. The spoil is taken by rail from the Logistics Hub for reuse in Kent, Cambridgeshire and Rugby.

Once the west box is complete, it will be handed over to HS2’s London Tunnels contractor to prepare for tunnel work between Old Oak Common and Victoria Road Crossover Box, with breakthrough expected in late 2024.

HS2’s Old Oak Common Station will offer unrivalled connectivity with fourteen new platforms; six HS2 platforms providing high speed services to the North and Midlands, four Elizabeth Line platforms, and four platforms for the Great Western Mainline, which will be served by trains to Wales and the South West.

“Work to build HS2’s super-hub station in West London is in full swing, and we are gaining momentum, reaching our construction milestones on site. This first concrete pour of the station box base slab means that we have reached the HS2 track level and can continue working eastwards to build the foundations for the HS2 operational services,” says HS2 Old Oak Common Client Huw Edwards.

“Once complete, HS2’s Old Oak Common Station will be one of the UK’s best-connected transport hubs, and will be a catalyst for economic development, the creation of new homes, jobs and spaces for the local community,” says HS2 Old Oak Common Project Client Huw Edwards.

“The successful completion of the first concrete base pour for the station box at Old Oak Common marks a significant milestone in progress being made across the HS2 project,” says Balfour Beatty Vinci SYSTRA Joint Venture Project Director Nigel Russell.

“We now look forward to excavating the eastern section of the station box at Old Oak Common, which on completion, will become one of Britain’s largest, best connected and most sustainable railway stations,” says Balfour Beatty Vinci SYSTRA Joint Venture Project Director Nigel Russell.

The first base slab poured at Old Oak Common is just one of a number of significant milestones we have on the project in 2023. BBVS JV began permanent works for the station box in June 2021, with the first diaphragm wall (D-Wall) and piling activity taking place on the site. The work was completed in March this year, after BBVS’s contractor SB3 installed the last of 275 D-Wall panels and 161 bearing piles, completing the 1.8km long wall. 

Work to begin constructing platforms for the ground level platforms, to be used by the Elizabeth Line and Great Western Mainline services, will begin later this year.

Source: © High Speed Two Ltd 2023

Image source: © High Speed Two Ltd 2023

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