Wednesday 23rd June saw HS2 Ltd commence permanent works on its west London ‘superhub’ station – Old Oak Common. The UK Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps’ green light means that work will commence with the construction of a 1.8km long underground diaphragm wall around what will become the station’s ‘underground box’, where six HS2 platforms will sit to accommodate trains serving the Midlands and the North. Pilling rigs will also install 160 reinforced concrete columns inside the wall to help form the box and support the structure.
Giving the green light for work to begin, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “The start of permanent works at the largest train station ever built in the UK in one go, Old Oak Common, marks yet more progress in delivering HS2, the high-speed, high-capacity and low carbon railway that will form the backbone of our national transport network.
Once complete, 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 Crossrail – or Elizabeth Line – platforms, and four conventional rail platforms, which will be served by trains to Wales and the South West.
Following the first phase of construction to create the 750,000m3 box, work on the eight overground platforms will begin. Over 1600 concrete piles will be installed into the ground on which the station superstructure and overground platforms will sit.
Bringing the station together will be the station’s immense roof, covering the area of over three football pitches. The lightweight roof structure has been designed to minimize the use of materials and allow as much natural light in which reduces the carbon impact of the station. The environmental credentials of the station will be boosted by solar panels covering the roof, generating a supply of renewable energy for the station. The station design development has been led by engineering professional services consultancy WSP with architectural support from WilkinsonEyre.
HS2’s station construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI Systra joint venture (BBVS) are leading the construction work on the ten hectare west London site. The station’s size and scale means it will boast some incredible stats and features including:
- 73,000 tonnes of steel
- 13,000 square metres of glass
- 2,720 square metres of solar panels on the roof
- 53 lifts and 44 escalators
- 550 cycle spaces
- 10,000 energy efficient LED light bulbs
With over 250,000 passengers using the station every day, Old Oak Common will become one of the country’s most vital transport hubs and a catalyst for economic regeneration for the area and the rest of the UK. Plans to transform the wider area around the station, a former railway and industrial site, are being led by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) and they project that tens of thousands of new jobs and homes will be created around the new HS2 station.
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