Construction of the new Old Oak Common HS2 train station in West London will today be given the green light by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps in what will be Britain's largest railway hub built in a single stage.
The £1.7billion project in Acton will get the go-ahead for permanent works at the 32-acre site which will involve a 1.1-mile-long wall being built underground as part of the installation of 14 platforms for different lines.
Developers HS2 Ltd said the station will include six HS2 platforms for services to the Midlands and the North, four Crossrail platforms, and four mainline rail platforms served by trains to and from the South West and South Wales.
Old Oak Common - set to open in 2030 near the current North Acton, East Acton and Willesden Junction stations - will involve more than 2,300 workers and have a roof covering the area of more than three football pitches.
The station will feature 73,000 tonnes of steel, 13,000 square metres of glass, 2,720 square metres of solar panels on the roof, 53 lifts and 44 escalators, 550 cycle spaces and 10,000 energy efficient LED light bulbs.
It comes as the high-speed rail project's costs have spiralled due to the suspension of work at most sites at the start of the Covid-19 crisis, combined with social distancing measures causing delays and reduced productivity.
A computer-generated image of the proposed Old Oak Common Station in Acton, West London, due to open in 2030
Construction on Old Oak Common will be given the go-ahead today with a site visit by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps
The £1.7billion station project in Acton, West London, will get the go-ahead today for permanent works at the 32-acre site
Old Oak Common station will feature 73,000 tonnes of steel, 13,000 square metres of glass, 53 lifts and 44 escalators
HS2 Ltd said the station will include six HS2 platforms for services to the Midlands and the North and four Crossrail platforms
Old Oak Common will form part of the new HS2 network with services to Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds once finished
The cost of HS2 is said to have jumped by another £1.7billion in the past year with the price of phase one between London and Birmingham having risen by up to £800million, sources close to the scheme told the Financial Times.
But HS2 Ltd denied claims that either cost had gone up, saying the budget for phase one remained at £44.6billion, including contingency for unforeseen events such as Covid-19, and the project was still within this figure.
HS2 Ltd, which is the company responsible for developing and promoting the network, said more than 2,300 jobs will be supported at Old Oak Common at 'peak construction' while more than 250 apprenticeships will be created.
Work will now begin on constructing the 1.1-mile long underground diaphragm wall around what will become the station's 'underground box', where six HS2 platforms will sit for trains to the Midlands and North.
Pilling rigs will install 160 reinforced concrete columns inside the wall to help form the box and support the structure.
After the first phase of construction has been completed to create the 750,000m3 box, work will commence on the eight overground platforms.
More than 1,600 concrete piles will be installed into the ground on which the station main structure and overground platforms will sit.
HS2 Ltd said a lightweight roof structure has been designed to 'minimise the use of materials and allow as much natural light in which reduces the carbon impact of the station'.
It added: 'The environmental credentials of the station will be boosted by solar panels covering the roof, generating a supply of renewable energy for the station.'
The station design development has been led by engineering professional services consultancy WSP with architectural support from WilkinsonEyre.
Mr Shapps, who will visit the
