HS2 construction updates

[Ianno87]

I have already made up my mind that I will never use HS2, however urgent I need a train. The existing route will remain my preference and if my trip takes twice (or more) as long as a result then so be it.

Dave

......why? Is the obvious question.

 

[6Gman]

There is also an excellent network of canals available for supporters of the Dionysius Lardner school of thought.

Canals? New-fangled inventions.

What's wrong with public footpaths ?

 

[Ianno87]

I shall exercise a free choice between the options on offer.

For Crewe - Euston I may well stick with the WCML to enjoy the journey (I fear that with all the tunnelling and screening the views on HS2 could be pretty tedious). For Crewe - Birmingham and especially the NEC HS2 will be very appealing !

Getting Euston to Crewe in less than 60 minutes is hardly "tedious"...

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Excellent. A couple of weeks late, but perhaps the Governement had something else to think about!

Excellent and rather surprising news.
For once, the HMG machine appears to have worked in the railway's favour.
The wall of media and environmental opposition and likely local action as construction starts up will be stifled under the Covid-19 restrictions.
The contracting world will be very cheered by this decision (though foreign firms are involved in them all I think).
The railway systems contracts are still to be let, of course.

As far as I can glean from the revised Business Case on the DfT web site, the full Phase 1 spec is being delivered (ie 360km/h, Handsacre, full signalling capacity).
Some updated draft service plans included as well.
They are attempting to fit 6tph into Old Oak Common.
DfT has certainly worked hard to get this thing approved.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/879445/full-business-case-hs2-phase-one.pdf

 

[Chester1]

The announcement is going to be largely unnoticed in the current climate. I think its fair to say that HS2 phase 1 is now officially past the point of no return. There are going to be some very angry people in a few weeks or months when major construction works get publicity.

 

[Glenn1969]

Should we be surprised they issued the Notice to Proceed this morning in the midst of the pandemic?

 

[The Planner]

Should we be surprised they issued the Notice to Proceed this morning in the midst of the pandemic?

It would have been earlier if Boris hadn't caught COVID19. Take the tin foil hat off.

 

[Ianno87]

Should we be surprised they issued the Notice to Proceed this morning in the midst of the pandemic?

Perfect time to get the paperwork in order during lockdown, so the diggers and workers are ready to roll out when restrictions are lifted.

Just sensible planning, is all it is.

 

[swt_passenger]

Should we be surprised they issued the Notice to Proceed this morning in the midst of the pandemic?

It‘s quite likely it wouldn’t have been reported anyway, in the overall process it’s not exactly a major thing is it?

 

[6Gman]

Getting Euston to Crewe in less than 60 minutes is hardly "tedious"...

It is if you're the sort of person who enjoys the view if it's a succession of tunnels, cuttings and acoustic screens.

 

[Bald Rick]

Should we be surprised they issued the Notice to Proceed this morning in the midst of the pandemic?

Given that we have had a pandemic, and little else, across the news for the past 5 weeks, and at least the same amount of time to come, it’s difficult to see how the announcement wasn’t going to be ‘in the midst’ of it!

 

[Bald Rick]

Perfect time to get the paperwork in order during lockdown, so the diggers and workers are ready to roll out when restrictions are lifted.

Just sensible planning, is all it is.

The diggers are already out, and the contracts are let. This just enables HS2 to commit cash to the contracts - TBMs ordered, that sort of thing.

 

[stuu]

I got Madrid when I followed the Sentinel-hub link. I asked for Water Orton and got that. First a street map came up and then immediately the satellite view came up. I could not see any way in which one could combine the two, as one can with other packages. Moreover there was no KML possibility. On Google Earth, one can add in the HS2 .kml file which is very useful. I could not see any sign of the tunnel preparations to which BantamMenace refers, at Water Orton.
What point am I missing here?

It's a bit of an annoying interface, especially not being able to have a transparency view of the map and satellite images, but I'm not aware of any other free source that provides imagery as recent as the previous day

 

[Ianno87]

It is if you're the sort of person who enjoys the view if it's a succession of tunnels, cuttings and acoustic screens.

Given that 95% of passengers want to get there quickly, not really a problem.

 

[AM9]

The diggers are already out, and the contracts are let. This just enables HS2 to commit cash to the contracts - TBMs ordered, that sort of thing.

I wonder if the protesters will be asked to move on for not observing the 2 metre social distancing rule?

 

[Geogregor]

I wonder if the protesters will be asked to move on for not observing the 2 metre social distancing rule?

I think there was already a protest camp removed, partially based on Covid-19 distancing rules.

 

[camflyer]

Perfect time to get the paperwork in order during lockdown, so the diggers and workers are ready to roll out when restrictions are lifted.

Just sensible planning, is all it is.

As long as it can be done safely, a lockdown is the ideal time to do some heavy civil engineering and infrastructure work as the roads, rails and city centres are as quiet as they will ever be

 

[popeter45]

does current design have any junctions to classic tracks south of Birmingham?

 

[swt_passenger]

does current design have any junctions to classic tracks south of Birmingham?

AIUI the only connection is via the infrastructure depot near Calvert.

 

[The Planner]

As long as it can be done safely, a lockdown is the ideal time to do some heavy civil engineering and infrastructure work as the roads, rails and city centres are as quiet as they will ever be

Notice to proceed doesn't enable that to take place immediately though.

 

[si404]

AIUI the only connection is via the infrastructure depot near Calvert.

And in the Euston throat, via the station itself.

 

[The Planner]

And in the Euston throat, via the station itself.

Nope, no connection there.

 

[popeter45]

Nope, no connection there.

surprised by that they decided to make HS2 an isolated island there
whats plan if a HS2 train brakes down / OHLE down and need dragging?, would need a loco to travel all the way from Birmingham

 

[themiller]

surprised by that they decided to make HS2 an isolated island there
whats plan if a HS2 train brakes down / OHLE down and need dragging?, would need a loco to travel all the way from Birmingham

It was intended for at least 1 platform to be capable of being used by either HS2 trains or classic trains. Has this facility been removed?

 

[Dave_Cardboard]

surprised by that they decided to make HS2 an isolated island there
whats plan if a HS2 train brakes down / OHLE down and need dragging?, would need a loco to travel all the way from Birmingham

Calvert Depot would be closer. There are "cripple" loops at Stoke Mandeville, (unless they've been deleted,) though ordinarily one wouldn't expect rescue loco's to be routinely parked there "just in case." Possibly they could abandon a stalled trainset at OOC or Euston itself untill overnight "engineering hours."
I don't recall whether the HS2 trainsets were specified with an emergency deisel "donkey engine" to "get them home" in case of loss of traction power - like the Class 801's were originally meant to be.
I would think if the OHLE has been pulled down, I doubt anything would be allowed to run past the damaged area, even if on deisel, but I guess it would depend on the nature and extent of the damage.

 

[Dave_Cardboard]

It was intended for at least 1 platform to be capable of being used by either HS2 trains or classic trains. Has this facility been removed?

Yes - for ages now the HS2 part of Euston station is "HS2 only" - there's no track connection between WCML and HS2 until Handsacre.

 

[Dave_Cardboard]

It would have been earlier if Boris hadn't caught COVID19. Take the tin foil hat off.

I don't think it was dependent on Boris: CEO of HS2 and the Civil Servant overseeing the project were before a Committee in Parliament shortly before Covid-19 happened and they were indicating is was going to be a week or two into April before all the "lawyering" etc. had been done to "dot the I's and cross the T's" on the formal documents.

"How can this happen during a pandemic" seems to be just the latest in a long list of straws desperately grasped for by those opposed to HS2 in order to try and fillibuster. Next week we'll be round to "bird nesting season" again.

Predictably "the usual suspects" were stamping their feet in faux outrage on the day of the NtP announcement, however it didn't generate anything like as big a TwitterStorm as I anticipated. Perhaps the fight is finally going out of the antis and they are packing up and heading home. The latest petition on the UK Parliment web site calling for HS2 to be abandoned shows opposition has collapsed in Northamptonshire (at least, as evidenced by said petition) the remaining hotbeds being the Chilterns and Kenilworth. Even their, at time of posting, support for cancellation is less than 1% of the electorate. Lichfield amuses me as their MP continues to complain bitterly, yet a meer 50 of his constituents have signed thus far. Seems like it's hardly a burning issue in Lichfield!

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

The rejection of Chris Packham's request for a judicial review on environmental grounds was probably key to going ahead this month.
He still says he will appeal that rejection.
But it will take quite a legal reversal for him to get anywhere with it, and the works will be in progress anyway.

2020 News

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www.leighday.co.uk

Environmental campaigner Chris Packham CBE has announced that he is seeking permission to appeal the decision by the High Court to dismiss his judicial review of the government’s go-ahead on HS2

 

[popeter45]

Yes - for ages now the HS2 part of Euston station is "HS2 only" - there's no track connection between WCML and HS2 until Handsacre.

if its entirely segregated from non-high speed line south of Birmingham why are they keeping the curve to enter Euston Northbound?
unless there is grade separation i cant really see a case against a low speed junction at Euston if not for passenger use but for maintenance/measurement trains

 

[si404]

Nope, no connection there.

Yes - for ages now the HS2 part of Euston station is "HS2 only" - there's no track connection between WCML and HS2 until Handsacre.

When did the shared platform drop from the plans?