HS2 Reuse of GC Infrastructure

[Ferris boy]

I'd love to see something of the original Great Central structures survive the HS2 construction blitz - the Calvert overbridge or maybe these A421 abutments look like the last hopes...

 

[The Planner]

Its not sat on the GC route continuosly at all. There will be loads of infrastructure left.

 

[swt_passenger]

I'd love to see something of the original Great Central structures survive the HS2 construction blitz - the Calvert overbridge or maybe these A421 abutments look like the last hopes...

You need to check the route maps. There are only relatively few areas where redundant GC infrastructure needs to be completely removed, there’ll be plenty left to see.

But the Calvert overbridge where the station was (School Hill?) is long gone now, and those A4421 (not A421) abutments won’t survive either, that road gets relocated a bit to the north and there will be a new ‘road over rail’ bridge, because the new track is somewhat lower than the GC formation. If you take Streetview through that bridge and then turn to the right you can see the new overbridge abutment being built offline.

HS2 Phase One: updated plan and profile maps for Country South 2016

These are the plan and profile maps for Phase One of HS2 between London and the West Midlands updated following completion of the House of Commons Select Committee process in February 2016.

www.gov.uk

 

[Ferris boy]

Thanks for the info - I realise most of the GC trackbed is untouched but hoped that something along the few km that HS2 follows it might be reused - maybe a culvert or a boundary wall as a memorial to Sir Edward Watkin's foresight ?

 

[swt_passenger]

Thanks for the info - I realise most of the GC trackbed is untouched but hoped that something along the few km that HS2 follows it might be reused - maybe a culvert or a boundary wall as a memorial to Sir Edward Watkin's foresight ?

I think once you allow for the changes in levels and gradients, and the increasing overall width of the HS2 corridor cuttings and embankments, that are built to modern slope angles, anything near the original trackbed at the points of overlap will be obliterated. The maps only show two dimensions easily, but further down the sheets there’s a red line profile showing that HS2‘s relationship to ground level is very different to the GC.

 

[fishwomp]

I'd love to see something of the original Great Central structures survive the HS2 construction blitz - the Calvert overbridge or maybe these A421 abutments look like the last hopes...

Alas that's the just haul road for the construction (Newton Morrell / Finmere) - it was still a rusty overbridge until HS2 came along! You could say it's put the abutments to good temporary use! HS2 also took down an old still-used overbridge and diverted the route about 1/2 mile north of the EWR/HS2 intersection - so if anything HS2 is removing the remaining GC infrastructure rather than finding a permanent reuse.

 

[swt_passenger]

Alas that's the just haul road for the construction (Newton Morrell / Finmere) - it was still a rusty overbridge until HS2 came along! You could say it's put the abutments to good temporary use! HS2 also took down an old still-used overbridge and diverted the route about 1/2 mile north of the EWR/HS2 intersection - so if anything HS2 is removing the remaining GC infrastructure rather than finding a permanent reuse.

I think in the case of the A4421 bridge it looks as if HS2 have built their own new set of abutments they could safely rely on. The temporary bridge girders go well beyond the original brickwork.