A major engineering milestone has been completed on the HS2 programme with the successful launch of a 130-metre steel viaduct across the Grand Union Canal near Ufton in Warwickshire. The 1.5-mile stretch of canal has now reopened to the public seven days ahead of schedule after engineers successfully slid the Read more…
Construction progress at Birmingham Curzon Street railway station has reached an important milestone, with engineers completing the final concrete pile that will support the station’s foundations. In total, 2,011 piles – each between six and 24 metres deep – have been installed to form the foundations for the new seven-platform Read more…
A specialist HS2 engineering team is preparing to move a 112m long, 1,631 tonne steel structure over a section of Lawley Middleway – part of Birmingham’s ring road in August. Rather than building the bridge in situ, disruption to road users has been drastically reduced by constructing the steel span Read more…
The High Speed Rail Group Apprentice Network is designed to connect apprentices and graduates from across our member companies and provide opportunities for mentoring, networking, meeting other apprentices and sharing experiences and best practice. We spoke to Engineering Rail Technician Stefan Mirkovic Can you describe your role in a few Read more…
Our 2025 Annual Conference, held in Birmingham, brought together senior leaders from across industry, government, and the wider transport sector to explore the future of high-speed rail, not just as a national infrastructure ambition, but as a practical route to UK growth and productivity. With the Spending Review on the Read more…
HS2 contractors have completed work on a pair of innovative extensions to the southern portal of its longest tunnel to eliminate the possibility of ‘sonic boom’ being created by high-speed trains entering at 200mph. The structures, built at the southern end of the railway’s 10-mile Chiltern Tunnel to the north-west Read more…
The HS2 lifted Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) ‘Sushila’ is out of the ground at the Green Park Way site in Greenford, West London following its 5-mile drive underneath the capital. The cutterhead, front and middle shield, weighing 850 tonnes, were lifted from the vent shaft in one piece using a Read more…
The foundations have been completed at the HS2 Old Oak Common high speed station in West London. The 850-metre-long underground station base, which will house six platforms for high-speed trains, has been constructed using 76,000 cubic metres of concrete and 17,000 tonnes of reinforced steel. The base slab covers 45,000 Read more…
Construction of a 14,500-tonne box structure designed to take the new HS2 line under the A46 Kenilworth Bypass in Warwickshire is proceeding at pace following the successful installation of 120 gigantic beams. The concrete beams, ranging between 13 metres and 24 metres in length were carefully lifted into place using Read more…
Our High Speed Rail Group Apprentice Network is designed to connect apprentices and graduates from across our membership – providing opportunities for mentoring, networking, meeting other apprentices with different roles and sharing experiences and best practice. We recently welcomes Advanced Fitter Apprentice Nathan Gibson to the network. Can you describe Read more…