We welcome the Government’s renewed commitment to delivering HS2 to Manchester, as set out in the Autumn Statement. HS2 is essential to national prosperity. As well as supporting 34,000 jobs, the project is vital for creating better connected, modern infrastructure, benefiting the UK and growing the economy for decades to come. HS2 Read more…
Our recent panel event – can transport investment deliver the levelling up agenda – explored how increased transport investment in all parts of the country can deliver the Government’s flagship policy. Hosted by the University of Leeds, and Chaired by RIA North’s Richard Carr, the panel featured contributions from: Henri Read more…
The HS2 project has celebrated the start of the next phase of tunnelling, launching the first of six tunnel boring machines (TBMs) that will dig over 26 miles of tunnels under the capital. HS2 Ltd’s CEO, Mark Thurston was joined by local teacher, Sushila Hirani, after whom one of the Read more…
We spoke to Hamza Mansoor, an Apprentice Engineer with the Integrated Project Team at SCS Railways
Can you describe your role in a few words?
I am part of the site team planning, organising and supervising a section of the HS2 construction project.
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We spoke to Gi-Ho Cheung, a Business Admin Apprentice with Strabag Can you describe your role in a few words? I am currently working with SCS Railways, which is a joint venture made up of Skanska, Costain and Strabag delivering on the HS2 Area Central sites. I provide project support Read more…
HS2 is celebrating the very first tunnelling breakthrough on its one-mile dig under Long Itchington Wood in Warwickshire. The 2,000-tonne 125m long Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) named ‘Dorothy’ – after Dorothy Hodgkin, who in 1964 became the first British woman to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, started its journey at the tunnel’s North Portal in December 2021, broke through the wall of the reception box at the South Portal site on Friday 22 July 2022. Nearly 400 people working for HS2’s main works civils contractor Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV JV) have delivered this important milestone on the HS2 project.
Our latest report – High Speed Rail: Levelling Up Voices – brings together influential voices from across politics, business and academia to make the case for the benefits of rail infrastructure investment, which include:
In short, investing in and improving transport connectivity results in a boost to living standards, more resources diverted toward skills and education, and restored local pride and opportunity across the UK – all of which are core tenets of the levelling up agenda.
You can download the full report here: High Speed Rail Levelling Up Voices
Following the coronavirus pandemic, economic recovery is central to the Government’s forward-looking agenda. But the report contributors make clear that (more…)
The first design images have been revealed of Washwood Heath Depot, HS2’s maintenance facility and main control centre for the whole HS2 network, which will create over 550 jobs in the local area. The site, north east of Birmingham city centre, is where HS2 trains will be maintained, serviced and Read more…
HS2 main works contractor, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV), have released updated designs for the land surrounding the section of the high-speed rail line that crosses the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal. The plans respond to community feedback and include a series of wetlands containing four new ecological ponds, expansive grass meadows Read more…
Our Annual Conference at Birmingham’s Think Tank Science Museum focused on the theme of ‘Delivering Europe’s biggest infrastructure project’. The day highlighted the importance of HS2 as a transformative project at both national and regional levels, one that is essential to achieving the Government’s goals of levelling up and achieving Read more…