New polling undertaken by Opinium on behalf of the High Speed Rail Group shows that the decision to cancel HS2’s Eastern Leg has undermined the people of Yorkshire’s faith in the Government’s levelling up agenda, with 42% of those with an opinion opposed to the scheme’s curtailment, as opposed to Read more…
Work on the UK’s longest railway bridge has ramped up this week, with High Speed Rail Group members Align JV beginning production of 1,000 enormous concrete segments that will form the deck of the Colne Valley Viaduct.
The viaduct will carry high-speed trains some 3.4km across a series of lakes and waterways just outside London, with the design inspired by the flight of a stone skipping across the water. The design was chosen to enable views across the landscape, minimise the viaduct’s footprint on the lakes and help complement views across the natural surroundings.
The huge deck segments – which weigh up to 140t – are being made on site at a temporary factory built specifically for the project. Each segment will be a slightly different shape depending on where it fits into the viaduct, a modular approach chosen to ensure quality, safety and efficiency in production and to avoid having to transport the segments by road.
HS2 Ltd is on track to cut the amount of embedded carbon in the viaduct by at least 28.4%. Applying lessons from the construction of the latest European high speed railway (more…)
We spoke to Daniel Herbert, a Quality Apprentice working for Balfour Beatty Vinci Can you describe your role in a few words? My role involves ensuring quality assurance through numerous practices such as product inspections, reporting, auditing and document control and handover. What were you doing prior to your Apprenticeship? Read more…
We spoke to Matarr Njie, an Apprentice Engineer working for Balfour Beatty Vinci Can you describe your role in a few words? I can describe my role as very interesting. At the moment I am working on understanding procedures, methodologies, and engineering as a whole, whilst working collaboratively within an Read more…
The deposit of the Hybrid Bill for the Western Leg of HS2 is a key moment in the advancement of HS2, as plans are progressed to create a truly North-South railway with connections between Crewe and Manchester. High speed rail links, which will change the nation’s economic geography, are one Read more…
Our latest report Modal Shift Matters – and HS2 delivers it sets out how HS2 is uniquely positioned to provide a more attractive alternative to both motorways and domestic flights and provide the capacity needed to accommodate modal shift on a significant scale. The report makes clear that a national Read more…
HS2 Ltd has published it’s Net Zero Carbon Plan, which sets out how HS2 will achieve new carbon reduction milestones, support the decarbonisation of the UK construction sector and reduce the carbon footprint of the programme. The report details that HS2 trains will be powered by zero carbon energy from the first Read more…
We welcome the announcement of the HS2 rolling stock contract to the Hitachi/Alstom JV as a huge step forward for the project. The contract will see the construction of the first 54 HS2 trains at factories in County Durham, Derby and Crewe, creating 2,500 skilled jobs. The HS2 trains will offer Read more…
The publication of Sir Peter Hendy’s Union Connectivity Review is recognition of the incredibly important role of rail – and of high speed rail – in providing much needed connectivity benefits across the UK. High Speed Rail Group welcome the planned creation of UKNET – a strategic approach to development Read more…
HS2’s construction partner for the West Midlands – Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV) – has announced it has hundreds of new jobs to fill across its supply chain. With local job vacancies ranging from apprenticeships, to site operatives and office-based support roles, BBV is encouraging residents to step forward and consider Read more…