29.08.17
HS2 on the lookout for Euston station and Old Oak Common builders
HS2 Ltd has launched its search for the “best the construction industry has to offer” in order to help expand Euston station and build a brand new Old Oak Common transport hub designed to serve the high-speed line from 2026.
The company announced today that it has begun looking for bidders interested in developing the new stations – both of which will be of paramount importance to the new line – alongside HS2 Ltd and the chosen designers.
Winning firms will act as ‘construction partners’ responsible for project management as well as procuring, integrating and managing the complex supply chains involved in the scheme.
At Old Oak Common, a new integrated transport hub will boast “some of the best connections anywhere on the network”, such as direct HS2 services to Liverpool, the north west, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Passengers will also be able to connect to Crossrail services via new platforms, as well as embark on journeys to Wales and the West of England.
The transformation of the former railway sidings and light industrial zone is being led by the mayor’s Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation, which frequently writes for RTM.
At Euston, the station will be massively expanded with 11 new platforms built in two phases, essentially tripling capacity. The staged approach to building the key HS2 terminus is meant to ensure services can continue to operate, therefore avoiding disruption and community-wide effects.
Bidders for both contracts are due to be invited to tender by the end of the year, with contract award expected in autumn 2018.
Meanwhile, market engagement has already kicked off for the Birmingham stations, with that procurement process – which has shorter lead-in times – planned to start early next year ahead of contract award in 2020.
“Launching this competition is another major milestone for HS2. Over the next decade, the successful bidders will go on to build two of the most challenging and high-profile elements of the project: a brand new transport hub at Old Oak Common that will kick-start the regeneration of the site plus a major expansion of Euston,” said Mark Thurston, HS2 Ltd chief executive.
“We’re looking for the best the construction industry has to offer. Companies that share our commitment to safety, efficiency, environmental protection and value for money. Together we will create two iconic stations, gateways to the capital and to the nation that local communities and the travelling public can be proud to call their own.”
As well as expanding the travel offer in the capital and beyond, the large investment at the two sites will help create almost 80,000 jobs and 29,000 homes, thus attracting businesses and housing developers to the well-connected areas.
“The launch of the search for construction teams to build the southern HS2 stations is another major step towards making Britain’s new railway, a catalyst for growth across the country,” argued rail minister Paul Maynard. “The winning bidders will need to ensure that the stations provide the best possible customer experience.”
Today’s announcement comes after a successful series of works during the bank holiday weekend to prepare Euston station for HS2.
It also comes just over a month after the company named the designers and engineers who are now formally in the running to develop detailed plans for the London stations, as well as two stations in Birmingham. These include Arup, Mott MacDonald, WSP, Arcadis and a Jacobs/BuroHappold/Idom joint venture.