Engineers worked through the Christmas period to reach a new major milestone
HS2 construction has reached a major milestone
Over the Christmas break, progress was made on one of the most complex aspects of the HS2 project, with the completion of two crucial viaduct spans over the existing railway near Water Orton in Warwickshire.
These spans are a small component of the Delta junction – a massive triangular intersection being constructed to the east of Birmingham for the new high-speed railway.
Similar to the nearby Spaghetti Junction, it consists of a complicated network of interconnected viaducts, carrying the high-speed line over motorways, local roads, existing railways, rivers and floodplains. It is designed to transport HS2 services to and from Birmingham, as well as connecting to the mainline heading north and south.
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To maintain speeds of 360km/h on the mainline and around 200km/h on the approaches to Birmingham, the junction is spread out over a much larger area than a motorway junction, encompassing 2.6 miles of track, including underpasses, flyovers and five major viaducts.
The Water Orton viaducts are located at the northern end of the junction and will enable southbound trains to join the spur into Birmingham Curzon Street and the rolling stock depot at Washwood Heath.
Engineers working for HS2’s local main works contractor Balfour Beatty VINCI utilised a five-day closure during the quieter Christmas period to safely complete the two parallel spans over the existing Birmingham to Peterborough railway line. During the closure, buses replaced trains between Birmingham New Street and Coleshill.
With the railway crossing finished, the crew can progress to the subsequent phases of the viaducts spanning the neighbouring A446 road and the M42 motorway in the coming year.
Sam Hinkley, HS2 Ltd’s Senior Project Manager commented:. “It’s great to see the Water Orton viaducts in place across the railway and I’d like to thank everyone who gave up their Christmas to help us reach this important milestone and I’d like to thank passengers for their patience.
“These precast segmental viaducts form a key part of the Delta junction – one of the most complex parts of the HS2 project and I look forward to seeing more progress in the year ahead.”
When finished, the twin single-track Water Orton viaducts will extend for approximately 1.4km across two railway lines, a waterway, local thoroughfares and the M42.
The structures consist of pre-fabricated concrete sections that are positioned using an enormous cantilever method. After each span is positioned, the permanent post-tensioned cables are fitted within the hollow core of the viaduct, enabling the temporary cable stays to be relocated forward to assist the construction of the following span.
The identical procedure is replicated between each support until all spans are finished. The 32 concrete supports that hold up the Water Orton viaducts reach heights of up to 20m and are poured on-site using specialist formwork and reinforcement frameworks produced at the nearby Coleshill facility.
The Water Orton viaducts are part of a 3.7-mile stretch across Delta junction, constructed using this innovative method. All 2,742 concrete segments required for the viaducts are being produced at a temporary factory in nearby Lea Marston.
Stephane Ciccolini, Senior Works Manager at Balfour Beatty VINCI, commented:. “This complex section of the HS2 route has taken a major step forward, after BBV teams successfully erected two viaducts spans over an existing railway near Water Orton.
“We’ve worked around the clock during the Christmas period to deliver this incredible feat of engineering, using a specialist cantilever technique not seen in the UK before this project. This approach involves using a 22-metre-high mast and a 14-metre-high swivel crane to move each individual segment into place until the span is complete.”
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