| NEWS
Civils works completed on HS2’s longest tunnel
Bidder picked for SRL East UK - A consortium of John Holland, Kellogg Brown and Root, and Arup has been announced as the Preferred Bidder to build underground stations for Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) East. The consortium - Place - is negotiating
to build stations at Glen Waverley, Burwood and Box Hill for the Stations Alliance North contract, which is expected to be awarded in 2026. The two other shortlisted bidders –
ESPA and Connexus – will compete for the second contract, to build stations at Clayton and Monash. Tunnelling on SRL East is due to start
in 2026.
Above: The Chiltern Tunnel’s portal extensions are designed to eliminate the possibility of a sonic boom from the high-speed trains PHOTO CREDIT: HS2
UK - Construction works on HS2 project’s 16km-long Chiltern Tunnel, the longest on the high-speed route, have been completed. The developer, HS2 Ltd, said
close of work at two of the tunnel’s vent shafts at Chesham Road and Little Missenden brought to an end a project that began almost five years ago. Trains travelling at 200mph will pass through the tunnel in just three minutes. Align JV began main construction of the twin-bore tunnel in May 2021 with the staggered launch of two 2,000-tonne TBMs – ‘Florence’ and ‘Cecilia’. Five deep ventilation and access
shafts were sunk to depths of up to 78m along its route and completed before the arrival of the TBMs. The machines progressed north at an average speed of 16m per day before breaking through near Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, in early 2024. Since then, work has continued
to build the extensions to the north and south portals, install internal walkways and fit out 40 cross passages. It is the second of HS2’s five twin-bore tunnels to be structurally complete. The 1.6km- long Long Itchington Wood Tunnel in Warwickshire was finished in February 2025.
HS2 Ltd’s head of civil engineering
for Chiltern Tunnel, Mark Clapp, praised everyone involved in the Chiltern Tunnel project. “Multi-faceted projects of
the Chiltern Tunnel’s scale and complexity don’t often come along; as a civil engineer, you’re lucky to be involved in anything like it. The team we assembled at HS2 Ltd, and with Align JV – our main civil works contractor – and all its subcontractors, to deliver this part of the new high-speed railway was exemplary,” said Clapp. Align JV project director, Adrien
Baudard, said being part of the successful delivery of the Chiltern Tunnel was a source of immense pride for everyone at Align and its supply chain partners. “Their unwavering commitment,
technical skill, and collaborative spirit have been truly impressive. Whether it was advancing safety standards, setting new TBM records, or helping to train future engineers, we’ve had the privilege of learning from and working with some of the top talent in our field,” said Baudard. Completion of civil engineering works will be followed by the installation of mechanical, electrical and plumbing equipment, with the design-phase already under way and enabling works beginning this year.
TBM for São Paulo Line 2 BRAZIL - A second TBM for São Paulo Metro’s Line 2-Green expansion has passed its Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) The 11.67m-diameter TBM,
manufactured by CREG, is an earth pressure balance (EPB) shield, designed for open mode and to achieve daily advances of up to 15m in soil and 10m in rock, respectively. Named ‘Big Armadillo’, the TBM is to
bore 7km of tunnel between Penha and Dutra, on the border with Guarulhos. Excavation is due to start by mid-2026. The other TBM - ‘Cora Coralina’ has
completed the project’s first phase and is getting ready for the second phase, from Penha to the Rapadura Complex.
TfL plans DLR extension UK - Transport for London (TfL) recently published a preliminary market engagement notice for a 3km-long extension to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR). The proposed Thamesmead Extension
Programme (TEX) route is from Gallions Reach to Thamesmead via Beckton Riverside, including a twin-bore 1.5km- long tunnel under the River Thames. It would also include new stations at
Beckton Riverside and Thamesmead. The pre-procurement strategy plans
for Early Contractor Involvement (ECI). Provisional contract window for the project is March 2027 until late 2033. Industry input is wanted in the early
planning, such as for concept design, phasing, packaging and sequencing of works and contractual arrangements. It is implementing a new delivery model to drive improvements, capture construction efficiencies, reduce costs, reduce carbon, and improve whole life costs.
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