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HS2 construction updates

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Jozhua

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I hope so. Not that it'll stop the usual suspects debunking it as "propaganda" etc etc.
True lol, they're literally as steadfast as antivaxxers lmao.
I'm sure there will be something. Probably broadcast nearer the time of completion though, as with Crossrail, even if footage starts being recorded now. Always more interesting if you can show something that vaguely looks like a railway rather than some fields.
Yeah, that's true. The tunneling is probably quite interesting to be fair, but yeah will probably be better in a few months.
I hope it’s not the usual channel 5 “artificial jeopardy“ style documentary, you know the sort of thing, “come back after the adverts to see if the entire M25 caved in”… o_O
Yeah lmao, the problem is they try to dumb it down or add artificial excitement, but it's going to mostly be nerds watching it anyway, so how about just talk about some interesting engineering stuff instead and have it be watchable...

HS2's posts are often quite light on detail, I'd love to see some longer form content really taking a deep dive into the technologies, design decisions, etc.
I remember one episode, it was ”will they avoid the Northern Line tunnels where trains are still running“…
Lol, yeah I think I remember that
 

Gostav

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True lol, they're literally as steadfast as antivaxxers lmao.
Because there is always have some supply by NGOs behind them, just check the website such as HS2 Rebellion donations are almost endless and very lucky British people are still very rich can supply them. That is why there have too much NGOs in Europe this years because use a "green" (and animals) title to make money is so easy.
 

camflyer

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Is there a flyover drone video of the current work?

Not "official" and not the whole route, but YouTuber "Michael Warner" posts some overflight videos between Burton Green and the "Kenilworth Gap" every so often. There's a few years worth to look back through at time of posting, though there's not a great deal to see in the older ones.

Here's his latest...


There's another chap, who changes his (YouTube) name from time to time who has a few more, here's his "Chalfont St Giles Vent Shaft November 2020...

 
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LNW-GW Joint

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What's the most northerly point at which there is or has been visible work?
It's not that easy to pick out from a speeding train, but the convergence of HS2 Phase 1 and the WCML at Handsacre (east side of the line a couple of miles north of Lichfield TV station) has been visible for some time.
Not been down that way for 18 months or so, but the land is being cleared for building the flying junction there. There's a large polytunnel farm just north of the site, on the opposite (west) side of the tracks.
There will have to be some widening of the WCML trace there to build the viaduct so that the HS2 Down line can come down to join the WCML Fast line.
On Google Maps you can also trace the HS2 route where it will cross over the WCML south of Lichfield, east of the A38 bridge, again with land clearance visible.
 
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The Planner

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It's not that easy to pick out from a speeding train, but the convergence of HS2 Phase 1 and the WCML at Handsacre (east side of the line a couple of miles north of Lichfield TV station) has been visible for some time.
Not been down that way for 18 months or so, but the land is being cleared for building the flying junction there. There's a solar farm just north of the site, on the opposite (west) side of the tracks.
There will have to be some widening of the WCML trace there to build the viaduct so that the HS2 Down line can come down to join the WCML Fast line.
On Google Maps you can also trace the HS2 route where it will cross over the WCML south of Lichfield, east of the A38 bridge, again with land clearance visible.
No longer the plan, HS2 joins/diverges from the slows now, reduces land take.
 

Bald Rick

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It's not that easy to pick out from a speeding train, but the convergence of HS2 Phase 1 and the WCML at Handsacre (east side of the line a couple of miles north of Lichfield TV station) has been visible for some time.
Not been down that way for 18 months or so, but the land is being cleared for building the flying junction there. There's a solar farm just north of the site, on the opposite (west) side of the tracks.
There will have to be some widening of the WCML trace there to build the viaduct so that the HS2 Down line can come down to join the WCML Fast line.
On Google Maps you can also trace the HS2 route where it will cross over the WCML south of Lichfield, east of the A38 bridge, again with land clearance visible.

If you are working off google maps - it’s not a solar farm but poly tunnels for agriculture. Solar farms are always arranged in rows west to east.
 

stuu

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What's the most northerly point at which there is or has been visible work?
Sentinel playground shows very recent satellite imagery, it's not high resolution but clear enough to see where there is work going on. There is a work going on pretty much up to the WCML junction
 

HSTEd

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If you are working off google maps - it’s not a solar farm but poly tunnels for agriculture. Solar farms are always arranged in rows west to east.

Technically not true, there are now a few farms, including one in France, that are "tented" with the rows of arrays running North-South with a row of east and west facing panels next to each other.

This produces marginally less energy per kWp of panels, but produces a flatter output curve (reducing grid connection costs) and produces more power at times outside the stereotype peak of solar farms.

Optimising for energy yield per panel is no longer as important due to the collapse in the price of panels over recent years.
 

Bald Rick

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Technically not true, there are now a few farms, including one in France, that are "tented" with the rows of arrays running North-South with a row of east and west facing panels next to each other.

In this country then!
 

Legolash2o

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Sorry if I've missed it. Is HS2 going to be two or four tracks? Especially the tunnels. If two I'm assuming they'll be reserveing space in case they need to add more tracks in the future?
 

squizzler

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It'll be twin track. The point of a high speed line is everything travels at the same speed (unlike a classic mixed traffic railway) so they can fit in lots of trains following each other at close intervals, and there is no need for a second pair of tracks to allow them to pass each other.
 

Legolash2o

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It'll be twin track. The point of a high speed line is everything travels at the same speed (unlike a classic mixed traffic railway) so they can fit in lots of trains following each other at close intervals, and there is no need for a second pair of tracks to allow them to pass each other.
Makes sense thanks.

Will there be loops at stations to allow non-stopping services to overtake stopping ones?
 

Nicholas Lewis

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Makes sense thanks.

Will there be loops at stations to allow non-stopping services to overtake stopping ones?
The through stations will have multiple platforms but still means a stopping train will control the headway in rear for a non stop train although I believe everything is planed to stop at Old Oak but not sure about station near Birmingham International so that may control headways depending on how far back from the station the turnouts are installed.
 

BayPaul

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Makes sense thanks.

Will there be loops at stations to allow non-stopping services to overtake stopping ones?
I believe that HS2 is four tracks from Birmingham Interchange to Delta Junction (I assume this may change if the Eastern leg doesn't get built). Effectively Birmingham Interchange is the only station where this is relevant - Old Oak Common, and probably Manchester Airport will have all trains stopping, and all other stations are off the mainline. If the Eastern branch goes ahead, I assume Totton will have through lines to allow overtaking.
 

snowball

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I believe that HS2 is four tracks from Birmingham Interchange to Delta Junction (I assume this may change if the Eastern leg doesn't get built).
Four tracks from south of Interchange to and through Delta Junction and six tracks between the north end of Delta Junction and Leeds Junction. This is a fixed part of the design of phase 1 and it would be far too late to change it now even if the eastern leg were officially dropped tomorrow. However this whole stretch is only about five miles, so would be covered in a couple of minutes.

Isn't it that the delay in IRP and no royal assent has meant works can't crack on?
Nothing is awaiting royal assent. Royal assent is the last stage in passing an act of parliament. Royal assent has happened for phase 1 (to Handsacre) and phase 2a (to Crewe). No other section has yet reached the stage of a bill being put before parliament, though a bill for the western side of phase 2b, to Manchester and Wigan, is due to be presented before the end of this year.
 
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fishwomp

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The Guardian had a comment on the death of the rest of the project - it's not pretty: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jul/30/hs2-johnson-vanity-cost-taxpayer

Key points in there..
  1. While the already-started London-to-Birmingham stretch is still marked at “amber/red” for “successful delivery in doubt”, anything north of Crewe has been designated “unachievable”. [a Government review says this]
  2. "[Trains] are not planned to tilt, which means that any time saved on a new track to Birmingham will be lost on winding track further north. A re-signalled King’s Cross line could even get to Scotland faster."
  3. "Andy Burnham, was an uncritical backer of HS2 when he thought it would get him fast to London. He will now find Birmingham blessed with cash that might have renovated his dire northern powerhouse rail network three times over – money he may now never see." [expect same from other Northern mayors..]
 

snowball

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The Guardian had a comment on the death of the rest of the project - it's not pretty: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jul/30/hs2-johnson-vanity-cost-taxpayer
By Simon Jenkins, who writes similar articles about twice a year. Already under discussion in another thread (which started off in UK Railway Discussion but has been renamed and moved to Speculative Ideas):

 
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I tend to think of the four/six tracking around the Birmingham delta junction and Interchange station as a function of the junction design allowing trains to achieve routes without conflict and a set of "acceleration/deceleration" lanes for trains calling at Interchange station rather than four/six tracking in the "Trent Valley four tracking project" sense.
 

edwin_m

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I tend to think of the four/six tracking around the Birmingham delta junction and Interchange station as a function of the junction design allowing trains to achieve routes without conflict and a set of "acceleration/deceleration" lanes for trains calling at Interchange station rather than four/six tracking in the "Trent Valley four tracking project" sense.
It mostly is, although the timetable may allow a train between Curzon Street and the north-east and one between London and the north-west to run in parallel.
 

Ethan1852

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snowball

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Distances apparently measured in metres to the nearest 10m, then converted to miles and quoted to the supposedly nearest tenth of an inch!
 
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