The base slab of the HS2 Victoria Road ancillary shaft in Acton has been completed by the Skanska Costain STRABAG joint venture (SCS JV).
In February 2021, the team began permanent work at the site by pouring a 160m3 concrete collar around the ancillary shaft.
They then used precast concrete segments produced by FP McCann Ltd to construct the first 11 metres of the 25-meter internal diameter shaft, before using the sprayed concrete lining technique to complete the remaining 19 metres.
The shaft was completed with a 3.3m thick base slab constructed in three different pours by a team of around 30 engineers and operatives.
The main pour of approximately 1,000 m3 of concrete took place at the end of 2021, with the second and third pours completed by the end of January 2022, totaling another 740 m3.
The site will serve as critical infrastructure for the HS2 project. SCS JV is also building a crossover box on the site, which will allow trains to switch tracks on their way in and out of Old Oak Common station, in addition to the 25m internal diameter shaft that will provide ventilation and emergency access to the Northolt Tunnels.
HS2’s Project Client, Malcolm Codling said: “The team at Victoria Road have made huge strides, completing the base slab of the ancillary shaft, and preparing the site for the launch of two tunnel boring machines. As we move into the next phase of work. It won’t be long until we begin to see where the railway will run through the site, taking it from our detailed construction plans to reality.”
Skanska Costain STRABAG Joint Venture’s Managing Director, James Richardson added: “We’re constructing eight ventilation shafts along our 13 miles of twin bore tunnels in London and this vent shaft is the first to advance to this stage.
“Work is progressing well at all our other shaft sites so that they are ready for the tunnel boring machines to travel through them as our huge tunnelling programme progresses over the next three years.”
The construction site on Victoria Road also plays an important role.
It will be used by the SCS JV to assemble and launch two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) to dig the 3.4-mile eastern section of the Northolt tunnels. The TBMs are expected to arrive in early 2023, and the 12-month tunnelling project will begin later that year.
A conveyor system will connect the site to the Logistics Hub at the Willesden Euroterminal, which will remove spoil excavated for the tunnels.
The conveyor system, which also connects the Logistics Hub to the Old Oak Common station site, is expected to go live later this year and will help HS2 reduce lorry movements by around 1 million lorries.
The Danny Sullivan Group are proud to be associated with such a major project. and being able to witness the amazing work that is carried out every day.
