Construction of HS2’s station at Old Oak Common is continuing at pace, with the station box taking shape as workers complete the first base slab concrete pour at the western end.
The 850-metre station box reaches 20 metres 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. From the Logistics Hub the spoil is taken by rail 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 offering 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.
Speaking about the progress on site, HS2’s Project Client Director for Old Oak Common, Huw Edwards, said:
“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 now reached the HS2 track level and can continue to work eastwards to build the foundations for the HS2 operational services.
“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.”
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.
“The successful completion of the first concrete base pour for the station box at Old Oak Common marks a significant milestone in the progress being made across the HS2 project,” said Nigel Russell, Project Director for Balfour Beatty Vinci SYSTRA joint venture (BBVS JV).
“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.”
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.
Image credit: HS2
