HS2 Burton Green Tunnel Roof Now Complete

HS2 engineers have installed the final roof segment on the 700-metre-long Burton Green tunnel.

The 16-metre-wide twin-box-shaped tunnel will carry high-speed trains beneath the village of Burton Green, near Kenilworth.

The internal wall separates trains travelling north to Birmingham, Manchester and Scotland, and south towards HS2’s two London stations in Old Oak Common and Euston.

Green Roof

Now structurally complete, engineers and ecologists will turn their attention towards the tunnel’s 500-metre-long green roof.

Doug Barnett, Senior Project Manager for HS2 Ltd, said: “With the main civil engineering complete, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the 150-strong team on the ground, we can now begin the next phase of this exciting project.

“We look forward to working with local communities to bring the bold design vision for Burton Green tunnel to life, maximising the potential of this new green space.”

The tunnel runs underneath Burton Green Village and the green roof will enable a link between the two sides of the village.

Once complete, the Kenilworth Greenway will be reinstated close to its original alignment, HS2 says. It will run above the new tunnel to provide a link from Balsall Common to Kenilworth, via Burton Green, for walkers, cyclists and horse-riders.

Tim Akers, Design Manager from the Mott MacDonald/SYSTRA Design Joint Venture, said: “A range of techniques were incorporated into the design to enable construction through this narrow corridor within the village.

“The end result will be a railway within a landscape, where the original character of the Kenilworth Greenway and ecological connectivity to the wider landscape are restored over the buried tunnel.”

Excavated material from the tunnel is currently being reused for wider landscaping works. Large-scale planting of native trees and shrubs will re-establish vegetated connections to Black Waste Wood and Little Poors Wood.

HS2’s construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV), is working closely with community groups and schools to explore ways in which they can enhance the Greenway.

Rupert Blake, Project Manager for BBV, said: “The next step is to install a 500-metre green roof on top of the structure, so it integrates into the natural landscape.”

Final Elements

BBV’s civil engineering team is now working on the final elements of the tunnel, including the escape walkway to the south of the tunnel, and the application of fire-proof protection to the upper tunnel walls.

Cromwell Lane, which links both sides of the village, was temporarily diverted during the construction. In October, following the completion of utilities works, it will reopen on its original realignment.

Recognising its significance to local communities, throughout the construction phase HS2 also created a temporary route for the Kenilworth Greenway. This starts at the site of the Burton Green Village Hall and then follows the existing field boundaries linking with Berkswell Station in the northwest.

Galldris Group were the main civils subcontractor and have played a key role in the delivery of Burton Green tunnel and its associated retaining structures, with a direct workforce of over 100 people based on-site.

Burton Green tunnel is one of five green tunnels being built on the route of the railway. The cut and cover design means they are shallower than deep twin-bore tunnels, and each tunnel will be finished with trees, plants and shrubs on top, helping them blend into the landscape.

The four other green tunnels are Copthall in outer London, Wendover in Buckinghamshire and Chipping Warden and Greatworth, both in Northamptonshire.

HS2 Ltd CEO Mark Wild is now leading a reset of the project to ensure that it is delivered as efficiently as possible and for the lowest reasonable cost.

The 140-mile railway is now at a peak construction between London and the West Midlands, with improvements in productivity made over the last year and key milestones now being reached across the route. This includes the recent operation to push HS2’s tallest viaduct into place in Birmingham and the completion of piling works on the city’s Curzon Street station.

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