Engineers have started assembling two massive tunnelling machines that will excavate the final 4.5 miles of underground high-speed railway, connecting HS2 directly into central London.

Each tunnel boring machine (TBM) weighs an astonishing 1,250 tonnes and will be launched from a specially constructed underground box at the Old Oak Common station. These machines will carve their way to London Euston, a journey expected to take around 18 months. Once completed, this extension will not only bring passengers closer to the capital’s heart but also boost capacity along the high-speed line, enabling more services to destinations across the Midlands and the North while unlocking opportunities for new homes and businesses near the station.

The two 190m-long TBMs were built by German tunnelling experts Herrenknecht AG and transported to Old Oak Common in sections. Using a 750-tonne crane, the machines are being reassembled in the underground box, ready to begin their excavation towards the HS2 terminus. The cutterhead, optimised for London clay, spans 8.53m in diameter, with the tunnel’s internal diameter set at 7.55m.

Functioning as underground factories, the TBMs excavate using their rotating cutterheads, install pre-cast concrete tunnel segments, grout them into place, and advance at an average rate of 16 metres per day. Crews work 24/7 below ground, supported by surface teams managing logistics.

The Skanska Costain STRABAG (SCS) joint venture, responsible for HS2’s London tunnels, has prepared extensively for the TBMs’ arrival. In January 2024, they completed a logistics tunnel at Atlas Road to supply materials and transport excavated London clay. The TBMs will launch from spray-concrete-lined tunnels constructed east of the station box.

With government approval secured for the Euston Tunnel; work continues on the Northolt Tunnel, extending west from Old Oak Common toward West Ruislip.

Continuing a tradition of naming TBMs after influential women, the first machine is called Karen, honoring Karen Harrison, the UK’s first female train driver. Karen worked at Old Oak Common depot in the 1970s. The second TBM, Madeleine, is named after Madeleine Nobbs, former president of the Women’s Engineering Society and a trailblazing building services engineer.

When their journeys are complete, the TBMs’ outer shells will remain within the tunnels, while the mechanical components will be dismantled and removed. The Euston approach will feature spray-concrete-lined tunnels transitioning into three tunnels to feed trains to and from the station platforms.

Plans for HS2’s terminus station at Euston remain under review as HS2 Ltd collaborates with the government and stakeholders to deliver an affordable, efficient station design. Further updates will be announced in due course.

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0:00 Introduction
0:16 Preparing the Euston Tunnels
0:35 What works have been completed?
1:00 Constructing key structures for the tunnels
1:50 Unlocking more efficient rail journeys
2:23 Outro

#HS2 #Construction #engineering #euston

@HerrenknechtAG @DepartmentforTransport

If you have a question about HS2 or our works, please contact our HS2 Helpdesk team on 08081 434 434 or email hs2enquiries@hs2.org.uk.

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