Work to prepare the ground for a new control centre and maintenance depot in Birmingham as part of high-speed rail project HS2 has passed a key milestone ahead of construction starting in earnest.
Joint venture team Balfour Beatty Vinci has excavated more than 35 million cubic feet of earth at the 160-acre Washwood Heath site which will eventually be home to the so-called Network Integrated Control Centre (NICC) and train maintenance hub.
As part of a cut and fill exercise, the recycled material has been cleaned and reused to level the ground, paving the way for detailed design and construction of the new buildings next year.
HS2 said that, by recycling and reusing earth as part of the remediation programme, it eliminated the need to import and export aggregate materials.
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Approximately 27,200 road wagons or 54,400 vehicle movements are estimated to have been avoided to date, according to HS2.
The NICC, considered the nerve centre of the HS2 network between Birmingham, London and the East Midlands, will accommodate around 100 staff who will control the real-time operation of the railway.
The site also includes a stabling yard with 14 tracks, a maintenance building for the preparation of HS2 trains and facilities for staff who will drive and service the trains. Once operational, the site is expected to support around 550 jobs.
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In preparation for the works, Balfour Beatty Vinci also diverted Wash Brook, which ran through the site and connects to the River Tame.
The Washwood Heath site has a long-standing rail history, dating back to the early 1900s, when it was first used as a railway sidings and marshalling yard.
Its heavy industrial use over the last century meant the ground was highly contaminated so specialist contractors have cleaned up the site ready for its new use.
The land in Drews Lane was once home to train maker Alston, formerly Metro Cammell, and latterly van manufacturer LDV before it fell into administration in 2009.
Alvin Pedzai, HS2 project manager responsible for the civils work at Washwood Heath, said: "We're absolutely delighted with the progress made on site.
"The earthworks and ground remediation programme for Washwood Heath is nearing completion and we're on track to handover to HS2's rail systems team who will lead the next stage in this exciting programme of work to bring this once-derelict site back to life."
Tim Cook, project Manager at Balfour Beatty Vinci, added: "Excavating one million cubic tonnes of earth is a great achievement, demonstrating the progress we're making at Washwood Heath.
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"Every effort has been made to recycle and reuse the material on this brownfield site, allowing us to repurpose part of Birmingham's celebrated industrial history.
"This more efficient approach is good news for both the environment and nearby communities, drastically reducing the number of lorry movements on local roads."
Work will now focus on completion of the west tunnel portal in readiness for two tunnel boring machines breaking through as they complete their 3.5-mile journey linking Warwickshire and Birmingham.